Mpumelelo Mhlongo finished fourth in triumph, winning the 200m bronze medal in dramatic manner at the Paralympics on Saturday, bringing Team South Africa’s total to six medals. Mhlongo, a T44 athlete, competed in the tougher T64 division and finished fourth in 22.62 seconds, setting a world record.
However, second-placed German Felix Streng was disqualified for a lane infringement, propelling Mhlongo, the T44 100m winner in Paris, to the podium. Sherman Guity of Costa Rica won in 21.32 seconds, with Levi Vloet of the Netherlands coming in second at 22.47. Collen Mahlalela finished eighth in the men’s T47 400m, clocking 49.95. Earlier in the evening, swimmer Christian Sadie finished fifth in a tight S7 men’s 50m butterfly final in 29.94 seconds, trailing Ukrainian Andrii Trusov (28.75), Colombian Carlos Zarate (29.08), and neutral Russian Egor Efrosinin (29.69). American Evan Austin finished fourth (29.89).
The Games conclude on Sunday, with Louzanne Coetzee, the blind runner who won bronze in the women’s 1,500m T11 earlier this week, set to participate in the women’s marathon.