Paralympics: 7 Epic Moments of Triumph and Defeat at the Rio Para Powerlifting

French Powerlifters Face Tough Challenges at Rio Paralympics

In the Para Powerlifting event at the Rio Paralympics, Alex Adelaïde and Axel Bourlon, two French representatives, struggled to achieve a medal. Bourlon’s first attempt at 163 kilograms was invalidated by two of the three judges, and his second attempt at 169 kilograms was another failure. Kazakhstan’s David Degtyarev took the lead in the competition, while Vietnam’s An Nguyen withdrew after failing his first attempt at 168 kilograms. Alex Adelaïde’s first appearance in Para powerlifting was a sixth-place finish with an initial lift of 160 kilograms. He later failed his second attempt at 165 kilograms due to a slight delay in his push.

Alex Adelaïde’s Bold Attempt for the Podium

For his final attempt, he took a gamble with a 172-kilogram lift, which would have placed him on the provisional podium if successful. However, he failed again, allowing his competitors to pull ahead. In the women’s under 41-kilogram category, Zhen Cui achieved a double victory by winning the Paralympic title and breaking the Paralympic record. However, she fell short of breaking the world record, which remains set at 123 kilograms. The 37-year-old Chinese athlete finally broke the curse with this first gold medal with a lift of 119 kilograms, outperforming Nigeria’s Esther Nworgu (118 kilograms) and Brazil’s Lara Aparecida de Lima (109 kilograms).

In the other women’s category, the under 45kg, the world record fell, beaten by the Paralympic under 41kg title-holder, Lingling Guo of China. With a bar at 123 kilograms, she wiped the previous Paralympic and world records off the books. Zoé Newson (Great Britain) and Nazmiye Muratli (Turkey) completed the podium. The competition continues until Sunday 8 September, with the women’s over 86 kg and men’s over 107 kg events at the climax. Four Paralympic champions will be crowned on day two of Paralympic Powerlifting competition at the La Chapelle Arena on 5 September. The women’s up to 50kg final will open the second day’s action with thrilling action on the cards.

Olivia Broome Favored in Women’s 50kg Final

Great Britain’s reigning world champion Olivia Broome looks strong to take the gold on paper, but the emergence of new stars at recent World Cups should kick off an exciting contest. At Tbilisi, China’s Jinping Xiao set a new Asian record with an effort 123 kg, while Bose Bejide displayed a strong show too. China’s Hu Dandan and world record holder Esther Oyema of Nigeria (131kg) will be missing out. Next up will be the men’s up to 59kg final, with China’s Qi Yongkai as the man to beat in the category. Al Salvador’s Herbert Aceituno and Iran’s Mohsen Bakhtiar will also aim to put up a powerful show.

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Google Doodle Celebrates Para Powerlifting

On September 5, Google marked the powerlifting event with an animated artwork featuring a blue bird, highlighting the upper body strength of the athletes. The official Google Doodle shows a huge bird lifting a big baguette like a barbell with a little brown bird resting on it and gorging on a piece of bread. “The wait is over, the weights are on. Get ready for today’s Para Powerlifting event at Aréna Porte de La Chappelle!” reads the official Google Doodle page.