South Africa's Paris Paralympic Medal Haul Was Its Lowest Yet, With Misfortune Striking Several Athletes

10 September 2024
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
By Keanan Hemmonsbey

Team SA arrived back in the country with only six medals - two golds and four bronze - after a week and a half of action.

Listen to this article 5 min Listen to this article 5 min The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games came to a close on Sunday with South Africa raking in six medals, placing it 46th on the medals table. China, with a staggering 220 medals, topped the standings.

South Africa's medal tally is the lowest ever, creeping below the seven medals collected in Tokyo three years ago.

Mpumelelo Mhlongo (T44 100m) and Simoné Kruger (T38 discus) brought home gold medals for South Africa.

Mhlongo had a terrific time in Paris. Apart from his blistering gold medal that he claimed in 11.12 seconds, he also claimed a bronze in the 200m T64 in 22.62 seconds, a T44 world record.

The multitalented athlete went on to claim a world record in the T44 long jump with a leap of 7.12m in the final, but his record-breaking performance was only good enough for fifth place.

Kruger's T38 discus win also came in a world record of 38.7m, an uber impressive feat by the 19-year-old, who will only get better with age.

South Africa collected a total of four bronze medals to accompany the two golds.

Pieter du Preez (H1 individual time trial), Louzanne Coetzee (T11...

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