Kenyan Paralympic athletes lament after disappointing Saturday morning results
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Reading Time: 2min | Sat. 31.08.24. | 15:08
The competition was also tough for Kenya’s javelin thrower, Sheila Wanyonyi, who finished ninth in her final
Team Kenya will have to wait a bit longer for medals at the ongoing Paralympic Games in Paris after the country’s main hopes, John Lokedi and Wesley Sang, faltered in their athletics finals at the Stade de France on Saturday.
The competition was also tough for Kenya’s javelin thrower, Sheila Wanyonyi, who finished ninth in her final.
Lokedi was the first on track in the men’s 5,000 meters T13 final, a category for partially blind athletes.
He kept pace with the leading pack for most of the race but began to fade in the last three laps, ultimately finishing sixth in 16 minutes and 10.06 seconds.
Yassine Ouhdadi from Spain pulled away with two laps remaining to retain his title in 15:50.64, ahead of neutral athletes Aleksandr Kostin and Anton Kuliatin, who claimed silver and bronze in 15:52.36.
Despite not making the podium, Lokedi found positives in his first Paralympic experience.
“The race went well, despite the results. It was a learning experience for me, a chance to re-assess my strategy,” Lokedi said. “I kept pace with the leading pack but couldn't maintain the kick in the last 800 meters.”
He emphasized the need for more training time and better facilities to compete at such a high level.
“We only trained on a good tartan track here in France, away from the murram track in Kapsabet. But it’s good to face a quality field to identify your weaknesses and mistakes,” Lokedi added.
He hopes to return stronger at the World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai next March.
Lokedi also stressed the importance of sending more athletes to international competitions to increase the chances of winning medals.
“The more athletes we have, the higher the chances of success. We need to draw more talent into para-sports,” he said.
Sang also expressed disappointment after finishing 12th in the men’s 1,500m T46, clocking 4:07.92.
Neutral athlete Aleksandr Laremchuk won gold in 3:50.24, adding to his world title from Kobe.
“I started losing balance after two laps and couldn’t pick up the pace. After the race, I realized some nails had come off my spikes,” Sang explained, looking forward to next year’s world championships.
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Wanyonyi, who placed ninth out of ten in the javelin T12/T13, admitted the result was not what she hoped for.
Yuping Zhao won with a new world record of 47.06 meters, surpassing her previous record of 46 meters from the 2019 World Championships.
“I am humbled to compete at the Paralympics for the first time,” Wanyonyi said.
She also highlighted the need for better resources and advanced training to compete with their rivals.
“I take this as a lesson and challenge myself to do better next time with self-belief,” she added.
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