The French delegation continues its harvest at the Paralympic Games in Beijing with two new coronations, Monday, March 7. The Blues always point to the 5the position in the nations ranking with five medals: three gold, one silver and one bronze.
The golden revenge of Cécile Hernandez in parasnowboarding
At 47, Cécile Hernandez is finally Paralympic snowboarding champion! After being content with silver in Sochi (Russia) in 2014, then silver and bronze in Pyeongchang (South Korea) in 2018, the Perpignanaise therefore adorned herself with the most beautiful metal in China, dominating the cross country event (LL2 category) ahead of Canadian Lisa DeJong and American Brenna Huckaby.
“I’m really happy with this gold medal. It was my dream since I started Paralympic snowboarding”reacted the interested party at the end of the race.
This morning, my coach told me “the final is for you” and I answered him : “No, first the quarter, then the semi-final, then the final. “I just wanted to focus on what I had to do.
The story is all the more beautiful as Cécile Hernandez, suffering from multiple sclerosis, almost did not make the trip to China after the abolition of her initial disability category – which includes athletes affected above the knees. – by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), for lack of competitors.
Narrowly selected after a legal fight, the Frenchwoman was therefore authorized to compete in the category which brings together athletes affected below the knees, i.e. with a lighter handicap. American Brenna Huckaby, amputated right leg above the knee and bronze medalist on Monday, is in the same situation.
Double victory for Arthur Bauchet in paraskiing
Already Paralympic downhill champion on Saturday, Arthur Bauchet did it again on Monday in the super combined, in the standing category. And the skier from Briançon does not intend to stop there.
“I came [en Chine] to give my all in every race. On the last, I will do with what I have left. I will finish these Games on the kneecaps, but at least I would have given everything! »promised the 21-year-old athlete after his Paralympic coronation in super combined, which combines a speed test (super-G) with a technical test (slalom).
Four years ago, at the Pyeongchang Games, the young man, who was then not yet 18, had already won four silver medals in five races – downhill, super combined, super-G and slalom.
Fourth in the super-G on Sunday, he still has two races left on the program to equalize this feat: the giant on Thursday and the slalom on Saturday.
Frustration for Marie Bochet in super combined
This Monday will, on the other hand, have had a bitter taste for Marie Bochet, 5e women’s super combined in the standing category. “There is a lot of frustration”said the eight-time Paralympic champion, silver medalist the day before in the super-G.
Third after the super combined speed test, the Frenchwoman made a mistake in the slalom:
I felt it a little in training that things weren’t going very well in slalom. After that, it’s stupid mistakes. It’s slalom, it’s going fast.
Auspicious day for Canada, China flies away
Full house for Canada, which won three new gold medals on Monday. Unsurprisingly, Brian McKeever won the 20 km classic in cross-country skiing (visually impaired category). The 42-year-old veteran has two more events (sprint and 10km) to try to equal the record of ex-German skier Gerd Schönfelder, who with 16 gold medals is the most successful Paralympic skier in history . Canadian cross-country skier Natalie Wilkie, for her part, won the long distance event (standing category) and her compatriot Tyler Turner, in snowboard cross (LL1 category), also won the most beautiful metal.
This harvest allows Canada to return to the podium in the medal table, a ranking more than ever dominated by China. The organizing country, after eight medals on Saturday and eight on Sunday, added nine more on Monday, for a total of twenty-five charms, including seven gold. Not bad, when you know that the Asian giant had only managed to get one so far – gold, in curling – in Pyeongchang (2018).
