Wheelchair fencer Tong Nga-ting’s goal for her first Paralympics was to reach the final four in the women’s individual épée – and she accomplished that target with a gritty performance in Paris, even if she fell just short of winning another medal for the SAR.
While Hong Kong’s hopes for medals on the piste were dashed on day 9, the national team continued its blazing form with 22 more medals, including a record-breaking performance on the track and an astonishing sixth gold medal in Paris for swimmer Jiang Yuyan.Mission accomplished for Tong Nga-ting
Tong was making her Paralympic debut for Team Hong Kong, China in the French capital, and reached the bronze medal match by winning the last point in her repechage.
There, she took on Ukraine’s Olena Fedota-Isaieva, where she found herself outmatched.
While Tong took the first point, her opponent then stormed to a 6-2 lead and never looked back.
Fedota-Isaieva made use of her superior height and reach to attack Tong, who struggled to find openings, en route to a 15-6 loss.
Category B fencers have an impairment that impacts their sitting balance or fencing arm.
Tong said she felt she could have fenced with more patience in the medal match. But overall, she's glad to have reached her target in Paris.
"At first I set a target of finishing in the top four. I didn't really think that I could really do it, so I feel very happy," she told RTHK.Tough day on the piste for Hong Kong
Another Hong Kong fencer, two-time individual épée Paralympic gold medallist Alison Yu, lost in a repechage round in Category A to Poland's Marta Fidrych, who eventually took bronze.
The six-time Paralympian told RTHK that she's happy about her own performance – as she thought she had handled her emotions well and had a strong mental game.
But Yu admitted that the weight of expectations had affected her performance.
"When everyone has strong expectations for me, that I must bring a medal home from Paris, are these expectations a good thing or a bad thing for athletes? To me, this was serious stress," she said.
Other fencers from the SAR, Irene Chung and Fan Pui-shan, were also eliminated in their respective events.
But they will have a final shot at a medal on Saturday, when they take to the piste again and face the United States in the round of 16 in women's team epee.Chan Yui-man looks to get back to basics
Elsewhere, swimmer Chan Yui-lam wrapped up her trip to Paris by finishing last in the S14 100m backstroke event, clocking a time of 1 minute 11.78 seconds.
She said she wasn't too happy with her time, and admitted that she may have lost focus after winning a silver – her first Paralympic medal – in the 100m butterfly last week.
"I had to tell myself, being at the Paralympics I have to get back to being the Chan Yui-lam with a determination to fight, and not just get carried away after winning a medal. I have to keep competing," Chan told RTHK.
Fellow swimmer Tang Wai-lok also ended his Games by finishing 14th overall in the corresponding event for men, which are for athletes with intellectual impairment.Jiang Yuyuan unbeatable in the pool
For the national team, star swimmer Jiang Yuyan won her sixth gold in Paris by dominating in the women's 400 metres freestyle S6, and she could still add to her tally when she goes again in 100m backstroke on Saturday.
Sprinters Zhou Guohua, Wang Hao, Wen Xiaoyan and Hu Yang also made headlines by winning gold in the 4x100 metres universal relay, beating their own world record set the day before in the final with a time of 45.07 seconds.
The event includes athletes of four different classifications, including visually-impaired athletes, amputees, one with coordination impairment, and a wheelchair race to finish the race.
Overall, the national team won nine golds on day nine, with another nine silvers and four bronzes.
So far, China have won 188 medals at this year's Para games, with 83 golds, 64 silvers and 41 bronzes. Great Britain are second, followed by the United States.
