Records continue to tumble in Tokyo as we come into day eight of the Paralympic Games. Plenty of action to follow, particularly in shooting where three UAE stars will be aiming for gold and glory.
Below are the Mena athletes we will be following on Wednesday.
Athletics
Olympic Stadium
Likely to be quite the competition in the men’s seated javelin - F34 final, with half the field featuring Mena athletes. Likely to medal will be Saeid Afrooz of Iran. Look out for 2008 gold medalist Faouzi Rzig of Tunisia, double Paralympian Azeddine Nouiri from Morocco and Hussein Khafaji of Iraq.
UAE’s Maryam Al Zeyoudi is back in action among the F41 women in the discus throw. It's likely to be a tough battle for gold between Tunisia’s decorated Raoua Tlili and favourite Youssra Karim from Morocco.
Tunisian Rio bronze-medalist Fathia Amaimia will be in the mix. Moroccan Hayat El Garaa and Tunisian Samar Ben Koelleb have added almost two metres to their PB’s since Rio, both will be pushing for new PBs.
Paralympic veteran and four-time gold-medalist Mohamed Chida of Tunisia will be looking to add to his impressive legacy in the men’s T38 long jump final.
Saudi Arabia’s Abdulrahman Al Qurashi and Fahad Alganaidl are racing for a place in the final of the men’s T53 100m competition. Both will be wanting to make history as the first Saudi to medal in a Paralympic track event.
Having finished sixth in the club throw, Noura Al Ketbi of UAE is back in action in the women’s F32 shot put. Al Ketbi has improved substantially since she won silver in Rio, but finds herself in a field of tough competition, including Algeria’s Mounia Gasmi.
Sarah Aljumaah of Saudi Arabia will be throwing in the final of the women’s seated shot put - f36 class.
Many Mena men will be competing for a place in the final of the 400m T13 in the evening session, including Paralympic champion and world record holder Mohamed Amguoun of Morocco. Algeria’s Skaner Athmani and Abdellatif Baka are pipped to do well, as is Moroccan Mouncef Bouja and Vahid Alinajimi of Iran.
Badminton
Yoyogi National Stadium
2018 European champion Israel’s Nina Gorodetzky is up against 2017 world championship Jing Zhang in the women’s singles WH1 opening group play game.
Goalball
Makuhari Messe
Israel’s women are playing for a place in the semi-final for the first time when they face 2012 champions and hosts Japan.
Shooting
Asaka Shooting Range
Three UAE athletes will be taking aim at the Asaka Shooting Range.
Abdulla Al Aryani will be shooting in his preferred competition - the mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1 class. Having picked up gold in London and silver in Rio de Janeiro, he will have his sights on the medals again. Saif Al Nuaimi who will be aiming to improve on his Rio 14th place finish, will also be representing the emirates, as will Ayesha Al Mehairi in the SH2 class.
Wheelchair Basketball
Various venues
Algeria’s women will play against Colombia in the playoff for 11/12th place.
