From Amiril Muttaqien Meketar
PARIS: The aspirations of the country’s top athlete Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli to clinch the men’s F20 shot put gold (intellectual disability) was dashed as he had to settle for a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games here, yesterday.
Muhammad Ziyad started the competition at the Stade de France with a throw of 16.75 meters (m) followed by a second attempt of 16.66m before securing his best attempt with a throw of 17.18m which was good for a silver and ended the competition with a throw of 16.86m.
Ukraine’s Oleksandr Yarovyi pulled off a surprise when he not only won gold but broke the world record twice here, clearing a distance of 17.60m on his third attempt to erase his teammate’s world record and defending champion, Maksym Koval which was 17.57m set during the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris.
Minutes later the 25-year-old athlete then surpassed his own world record that only lasted a few minutes, with a throw of 17.61m on the fourth attempt thus snatching the gold.
Koval’s performance yesterday seemed to be lacking when his throws were red-flagged four times and had to settle for a bronze medal through his best attempt in the second throw with a distance of 16.99m. – BERNAMA
