Kiwi hand cyclist Rory Mead shrugged off the wet and cold and an hour-long delay to record his best finish at the Paralympics.
Mead finished fourth in the men’s H1-2 road race in Paris which was one place better than his fifth-placed finish yesterday in the men's H2 individual time trial.
The weather played a key role in the day’s racing as heavy surface flooding caused the race start to be delayed by an hour, and reduced the race by a lap.
Rory Mead achieved his best finish at a Paralympic Games finishing fourth in the men's H1-2 road race. (Source: TVNZ)
“It was probably the wettest ride I’ve ever done, so we had to come up with a bit of Kiwi ingenuity and put plastic bags on my hands to keep dry,” said Mead.
“In the moment when I was told the race was delayed by an hour, I was not too happy but looking back I’m glad they did because the weather did start to lift. I was also a fan of the reduced distance because it was cold out there."
The 37-year-old hand cyclist produced his best result at the Paralympics, completing the 42.6km course in a time of 1:40:34. Mead finished fifth in both of the events in Tokyo.
“Fourth is my best so far at a Paralympic Games, but I don’t know if I’m going to be happy until I get on that podium.”
Defending champion Florian Jouanny from France won the race with a time of 1:20:18, beating Spanish rider Spain’s Sergio Garrote Munoz by 22 seconds.
“I quickly found myself alone in the race and then it was just a matter of survival," Mead said.
"Then I just tapped into all the training I’d done all year and rode the race to the finish line.”
Mead sustained a spinal cord injury in a motocross racing accident in 2014 in the US, but post-accident he discovered a passion for hand cycling.
New Zealand's hunt for a gold medal at the Games continues, but the Kiwi Para athletes have picked up seven medals so far (four silver, three bronze).
Also overnight, three Kiwi Para swimmers failed to make it past the heat stage in their respective events.
Tupou Neiufi competed in the women’s 50m freestyle and finished sixth in her heat with a time of 33.40 making her the 10th fastest across both heats, meaning she missed out on a place in the final.
“This wasn’t really a strong race for me, but I guess this was about trying to get that redemption for myself and making sure I felt better after I hopped out of the pool,” said Neiufi.
Earlier at the Games, Neiufi was aiming to defend her title in the women’s 100m backstroke S8, but she finished fifth in her heat and didn’t progress to the final.
“I’m proud to make it here because there were a lot of questions about whether I would make the team or whether I wanted to be here in Paris because I had a lot of things going on in my life outside of the pool. Although the swims weren’t that great (at Paris 2024), I’m really proud to make it here.”
Christchurch-based duo Gaby Smith and Lili-Fox Mason both lined up in the women’s 400m freestyle S10 but both couldn’t make it out of their heats.
19-year-old Mason was in fourth at the 100m mark but slipped back to sixth, recording a time of 5:00.42 - just two-and-a-half seconds shy of her personal best.
“I’m not super happy with the time I did this morning, it is not how I train to swim that race,” said Mason. “But it is my first (Paralympic) Games and it is super exciting to be in a field with a lot of talented competitors, I'm excited to see where I go from here.”
18-year-old Smith is the youngest member of the NZ Paralympic Team in Paris, and finished sixth in heat two registering a time of 5:02.31. Smith still has one event left to compete in as she swims in the women’s 200m individual medley SM10.
In contrast, the oldest member of the NZ Paralympic team also competed on day eight with 62-year-old Greg Reid competing in qualification for the R6 Mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1.
He finished 36th with a total score of 600.6pts and did not progress to the final.
Watch the Paralympics live on TVNZ+ and TVNZ1 from August 29-September 9.
SHARE ME