In the Paracanoe-Kayak Va’a 200m final, Quebecer Mathieu St-Pierre (VL2) finished fifth, stopping the clock at 56.029 seconds.
On Canal de la Forêt de la Mer, Brazilian Fernando Rufino de Paulo, who dominated qualifying on Thursday, won the first Paralympic gold medal in the sport’s history with a time of 53.077 seconds, a Paralympic Games record.
American Stephen Huxton (55.093) and Portugal’s Norberto Mourao (55,365) completed the podium. Igor Korobnikov (4th, 55,681) of the Russian Paralympic Committee was the only other athlete to outpace Saint-Pierre in the final race.
In the semi-finals, the athlete from Shawinigan took third place in his warm-up with a time of 56.025. He was beaten at the finish line by silver medalist Stephen Huxton and Hungary’s Tamas Gohas.
On Thursday, St-Pierre failed to finish first in their qualifying group, and had to go into the semi-finals on Saturday to stand a chance in the final.
St-Pierre’s preparation for the Paralympics in Tokyo has not been easy, as he underwent surgery in December before formalizing his presence in the games during the Szeged Speed Paracanoe World Cup, in Hungary, last May.
Difficult exit for Lynne Tremblay
In the 50m SH2 Air Rifle event qualifier, Lyne Tremblay ranked 29th with a total of 586.8 points. This result unfortunately is not enough to get a pass in the final.
Tremblay, of Magog, struggled at the firing line and scored over 100 points just once. Her compatriot Doug Blissin from British Columbia finished first with a total of 610.3 points.
Serbian Dragan Ristic broke the world record in qualifying with 631.3 points. He beats Ukrainian Pavlo Volynets’ record dating back to October 2013.
Ristic (252.7 points) did it again in the final by winning the gold, while improving the world record for a final event. His compatriot Zdravko Savanovich won the silver with a score of 250.1 points, while Ukrainian Vasyl Kovalchuk (228.9 points) took third place.
At the first upcoming Paralympics, Lynne Tremblay was alarmed by Japan’s heat. However, the 58-year-old came to Tokyo with learning goals in mind.
“I am glad I was able to engage with the young athletes I was able to talk to. I am curious and always looking to learn, I learned a lot here about shooting, mentality and technique,” admitted Tremblay.
Lynne Tremblay previously participated in the 2012 London Games and 2008 Beijing Games in shooting events. She now intends to turn her attention to the World Championships, and then to the Paris Games in 2024.
