Paralympic Games
24 August - 5 September 2021

Day 9: Paralympic Games preview

Taekwondo and canoe start competitions in a day with 47 medal events at Tokyo 2020 01 Sep 2021
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Man paddles in a kayak
After a successful first edition at Rio 2016, canoe is back in the Paralympics
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By IPC

A very busy day will have 47 finals decided with athletics and swimming accounting for 18 and 15 of them respectively. Para Taekwondo will make its Paralympic Games debut with preliminary round matches. Canoe Sprint competition also opens proceedings with preliminary heats in various categories.

Here are things that you can look forward to on September 2: 

ARCHERY

Timing: 10:00 - 14:00 JST and 17:30 - 19:21 JST

The Women’s Individual Recurve Open will conclude on Thursday with matches being held from 1/16 Elimination rounds to the final.

Watch out for Zahra Nemati (IRI), who has been ticking off historical milestones in archery and breaking boundaries for female athletes since she won gold at the 2015 Asian Para Championships. After winning Paralympic gold in the women's individual recurve open at both London 2012 and Rio 2016, she targets her third in Tokyo. In London, she also became the first Iranian female Paralympic champion and in Rio competed at both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Iran's Zahra Nemati aims for her third consecutive gold in the women's individual recurve

 China has two competitors -- Gao Fangxia and Wu Chunyan -- both would be among contenders while Turkey too has two contenders.

 ATHLETICS

Timing: 9:30 - 12:55 JST and 19:00 - 22:01 JST

A total of 18 finals will be conducted on day seven of Para-athletics.

The morning session will have seven finals.

First up will be the women’s shot put F35 where Ukraine’s Mariia Pomazan leads the pack for the last decade. She is the five-time world champion, two-time European champion, and a Paralympic gold medallist from London 2012. Four years later, she took silver at Rio 2016. Anna Luxova from the Czech Republic lies in second place with a season-best also set in Poland.

Brazil’s Marivana Oliveira is third in the rankings with the best result set in June in Sao Paulo. She is a bronze medallist from Rio 2016 Paralympics and a two-time World Championships medallist from Doha 2015 and Dubai 2019.

 In the men’s long jump T37, China’s Zhou Peng will be the man to beat as the reigning world champion from Dubai 2019. Brazil’s Mateus Evangelista will be looking at his first Paralympic gold after his silver from Rio 2016. He is also a two-time World Championships medallist from 2017 and 2019.

Vladyslav Zahrebelnyi from Ukraine is the leading Para-athlete in the event this year. He set his mark at the Euros in Poland where he defended his title from Berlin 2018. Zahrebelnyi is the two-time World Championships bronze medallist as well.

 The first track final of day seven will be the men’s 400m T12 which has seen African dominance in recent years. Morocco’s Abdeslam Hili is the reigning world champion from Dubai 2019 and the current world record holder. Hili’s compatriot Mahdi Afri won the gold medal at the London 2017 Worlds but had to settle for silver two years later in Dubai. His CV also includes a silver medal at the Rio 2016 Paralympics.

Neither Hili nor Afri had significant results in 2021 so far. The leading 400m sprinter this year is Rouay Jebabli from Tunisia. He set the season-best time at the Tunis Grand Prix in March. Turkey’s Oguz Akbulut, the two-time European champion, holds the second-best result of the year.

 On the schedule is another women's shot put event, in the F57 class. Algeria will be eyeing one or two medals with names like Algeria’s Nassima Saifi, London 2017 world champion, and Rio 2016 Paralympic silver medallist. Saifi’s compatriot Nadia Medjmedj won gold at the Athens 2004 Paralympics and two bronze medals at Beijing 2008 and Rio 2016. But the favourite to gold is Mexico’s Maria de Los Angeles Ortiz. She is the back-to-back Paralympic champion and the reigning world champion from Dubai 2019. She is also the world record holder in the event.

 Morocco’s Mohamed Amguoun will be defending his Paralympic title in the men’s 400m T13. He is a two-time world champion in the race (Doha 2015 and London 2017). Namibia’s Johannes Nambala will be Amguoun’s biggest rival in the battle for gold. He is also a two-time world champion from Lyon 2013 and Dubai 2019. Nambala finished second behind Amguoun at the last Paralympics. Algeria’s Skander Athmani is the fastest man in 2021 with a time set at the Dubai World Para Athletics Grand Prix. He is almost 1.50s faster than the second-best time of the year, from Morocco’s Adnane Khouri.

Two-time world champion Johannes Nambala, from Namibia

 Brazil’s Alessandro Da Silva is the clear favourite for gold in the men’s discus throw F11. The vision-impaired athlete is the reigning Paralympic champion, back-to-back world, and Parapan American Games champion, as well as the world record holder. He set the best result in 2021 at the National Trials in Sao Paulo in June. Italy’s Oney Tapia is holding onto second place in the rankings. He is the two-time European champion and a silver medallist from both the Rio 2016 Paralympics and the Dubai 2019 Worlds. Poland’s Miroslaw Madzia will be a threat to Da Silva and Tapia as the reigning European champion from Bydgoszcz in June.

 The women’s 100m T37 will close the curtain in the morning session. France's Mandy Francois-Elie is the world record holder and the fastest woman in the event in 2021. She is the three-time European champion, world champion from Lyon 2013, and the London 2012 Paralympic champion. She took silver at the Rio 2016 Games. China's Xiaoyan Wen and Fenfen Jiang dominated the race at the World Championships in Dubai in 2019. Wen won the gold medal with silver to Jiang. Ukraine’s Nataliia Kobzar and the USA’s Jaleen Roberts have the second-and third-best times of the year. Kobzar is a silver medallist from the London 2017 World Championships where Roberts took bronze.

 The evening session at the National Olympic Stadium will kick off with the men’s javelin throw F13. Daniel Pembroke from Great Britain is leading the way in 2021 with a mark that gave him the gold medal at the Bydgoszcz 2021 Europeans. Spain's Hector Cabrera Llacer is another medal hopeful as the Berlin 2018 European champion and two-time World Championships medallist.

Azerbaijan’s Orkhan Gasimov has the third-best mark of the year set at the Tunis Grand Prix.

  USA’s Jeremy Campbell, who leads the pack, is the reigning world champion in the men’s discus throw F64, as well as the 2021 ranking leader. Campbell set his best result at the US National Trials in Minneapolis in June. Ivan Katanusic from Croatia is second to the National competition in Split. He took gold at June's European Championships in Poland and also has a bronze medal from the Dubai 2019 Worlds in his collection.

USA’s David Blair won silver in Dubai and will be another threat for Campbell in Tokyo. Great Britain’s Dan Greaves is the Berlin 2018 European champion and silver medallist from Bydgoszcz 2021.

 The first track final on the evening session will be the men’s 100m T11. USA’s David Brown is the defending Paralympic champion and the current world record holder. He won world titles in 2015 and 2017 and has the third position in the 2021 rankings. Greece’s Athanasios Ghavelas is the leading sprinter this year with the result that took him to the top of the podium at the European Championships in Bydgoszcz. Timothee Adolphe from France took silver at Euros setting the second-best result of 2021. He has another silver medal from the Dubai 2019 Worlds to add to the gold from the Berlin 2018 Euros.

 Brazil will have a strong team in the men’s 100m T11 in Tokyo. Lucas Prado is the reigning world champion from Dubai, while Felipe Gomes has two Paralympic and three World Championships medals to his name. Namibia's Ananias Shikongo won a bronze medal at the Rio 2016 Paralympics and silver at the London 2017 Worlds. After three male events, it will be time for the women’s shot put F33. Asmahan Boudjadar from Algeria is the reigning Paralympic champion and the gold medallist from the London 2017 Worlds. Qatar’s Sara Hamdi Masoud won a silver medal in both competitions adding another second place to her CV at the Indonesia 2018 Asian Para Games. Poland’s Joanna Oleksiuk is the Para athlete to beat in the event this year. She owns the best mark of the year from the European Championships in Bydgoszcz.

Brazilian Lucas Prado will run the men's 100m T11 as current world champion

 Another women’s event will follow bringing a Paralympic legend to the track. Cuba's Omara Durand is the defending Paralympic champion, three-time world champion, and two-time Parapan American Games champion in the women's 100m T12.

On top of that, Durand is also the world record holder and the leading sprinter in 2021 with a result set at the Tunis Grand Prix in March. Germany's Katrin Mueller Rottgard is likely to be Durand’s biggest threat in Tokyo as the bronze medallist from the previous Games in Rio de Janeiro. She won silver at the London 2017 Worlds and gold at the Berlin 2018 Euros.

 Two more track finals in the women’s competition are on the schedule, both of them in the 400m. First up is the women’s 400m T53 with China’s Hongzhuan Zhou as the clear favourite for gold. She is the back-to-back Paralympic champion and the reigning world champion from Dubai 2019. USA’s Chelsea McClammer should be Zhou’s main rival in the event as the world record holder and the silver medallist from Rio 2016. She won two Parapan American Games titles in Guadalajara 2011 and Toronto 2015.

Great Britain’s Samantha Kinghorn leads the 2021 rankings in the distance with a result set at a competition in Switzerland in May.

Switzerland’s Catherine Debrunner is sitting in second place in the rankings with her European Championships gold-mark from June. She is also the reigning world champion from Dubai in 2019.

Hamide Dogangun from Turkey is the third-fastest this year. She took silver at Bydgoszcz 2021 and has a bronze from the Dubai 2019 Worlds. Australia’s Angella Ballard is another one to watch out for the two-time Paralympic bronze medallist and a world champion from Doha 2015.

 Next up will be the women’s 400m T54 final. USA’s Paralympic legend Tatyana McFadden has not given any chance to her rivals for almost a decade. The world record holder has the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympic gold, besides three-time World Championships gold in the event. She is the second-fastest this year behind Switzerland’s Manuela Schaer. McFadden’s compatriot Cheri Madsen is in third place. She is the Paralympic champion from Sydney 2000 and a two-time World Championships medallist.

China’s Lihong Zou won bronze at Rio 2016 behind McFadden and Madsen. Her most recent success came at the Dubai 2019 Worlds where she won the gold medal taking advantage of McFadden's absence.

 The last women's event on day seven will be the long jump T63. Italy’s Martina Caironi, the world record holder, will seek her first Paralympic title after winning two European Championships in 2018 and 2021. She set the season-best result in Bydgoszcz in June. Vanessa Low will be Caironi’s main threat as the defending Paralympic champion and the reigning world champion. German-born Low represented the European country in two Games and made her international debut for Australia at the Dubai 2019 Worlds. Belgium’s Haenen Gitte is another medal hopeful as the silver medallist from the Dubai 2019 Worlds and Berlin 2018 Euros.

 Canada’s Brent Lakatos is leading the way in the men’s 800m T53. He is the world record holder and a three-time world champion from 2015 to 2019. The only thing Lakatos misses on his CV is the Paralympic gold in the race. He took silver in London 2012 and bronze in Rio 2016. Lakatos will come to Tokyo in great form as the fastest man this year with a time set at the Nottwil Grand Prix. Thailand’s Pongsakorn Paeyo took gold at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and Jakarta 2018 Asian Para Games. He has two World Championships medals but no gold so far. Pierre Fairbank from France is the three-time European champion and another medal candidate. He has been on the Paralympic podium with silver at Rio 2016 and bronze 21 years ago at Sydney 2000. Fairbank has four World Championships medals to his name.

 The penultimate final of the day will be the men’s 800m T54 in which USA’s Daniel Romanchuk and Switzerland’s Marcel Hug will be battling for gold. Romanchuk is the reigning world champion and world record holder, as well as the fastest man this year with a time set in Arbon. Hug finished second at the same competition. He is the defending Paralympic champion with one World Championships and three European Championships titles to his name. Yong Zhang from China and Saichon Konjen from Thailand will be trying to cause an upset in Tokyo. Zhang is the bronze medallist from the Dubai 2019 Worlds, while Konjen won silver at the Rio 2016 and bronze at the London 2012 Paralympics.

USA's Daniel Romanchuk is the reigning world champion and record holder in the men's 800m T54

 The final medal event of the day will be the men’s shot put F35. China’s Xinhan Fu is the defending Paralympic champion and the gold medallist from the London 2017 Worlds. He won silver at the last World Championships in Dubai two years ago. Khusniddin Norbekov from Uzbekistan beat Fu in Dubai. He is the world record holder and tops the ranking with a throw from the Dubai World Para Athletics Grand Prix. Argentina’s Hernan Emanuel Urra and Latvia’s Edgars Bergs are other Paralympic medallists in the event. Urra won silver and Bergs bronze medals at Rio 2016. Since then, the Argentinian took gold at the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games and bronze a couple of months later at the Dubai World Championships. Bergs triumphed at two consecutive European Championships in Berlin 2018 and Bydgoszcz in June this year.

 BADMINTON

Timing: 9:30 - 21:00 JST

Preliminary Group stage matches in men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s doubles are on the schedule. 

 Watch out for Qu Zimo (CHN) Ranked No. 1 in the world, Qu had a sensational 2019, becoming world champion in the men’s singles WH1 and doubles WH1-2. He finished the year with triple crowns (singles, doubles, and mixed doubles) at the China and Turkey Para-Badminton Internationals. On top of all that, he is still a rising talent, turning 20 just before the Opening Ceremony of Tokyo 2020.

China's Qu Zimo

 Having won the past four World Championships, Kim Jungjun (KOR) is the strong favourite for gold in the men’s singles WH2. Despite an ongoing rivalry with Hong Kong’s Chan Ho Yuen, when it comes to the biggest tournaments, Kim continues to prove clutch. He clinched his fourth consecutive singles world title over Chan in 2019 but knows the Hong Kong athlete is hoping for revenge on the biggest stage this summer. 

 BOCCIA

Timing: 9:30 - 12:55 JST and 14:25 - 19:45 JST

Pool matches in team competitions will continue in BC1, BC2, BC3, and BC4 with South Korea, Portugal, Brazil, Spain Thailand and Great Britain are among the most successful countries. Thailand won the title in Rio 2016 with Japan and Portugal taking silver and bronze.

 CANOE SPRINT

Timing: 9:30 - 11:40 JST 

Competitions will start with preliminary rounds in KL1, KL2, VL2, KKL3, L2, and VL3. 

WATCH OUT FOR:

Curtis McGrath (AUS): Having lost both his legs to an improvised explosive device (IED) while serving in the Australian army in Afghanistan in 2004, McGrath told his fellow soldiers he would be at the Paralympics one day. Fast forward to Rio 2016 and not only did he compete, he won gold in the men’s KL2. He has also been undefeated at the event at the World Championship stage since 2016 with four titles. And with Tokyo in his sights, he will be looking to defend his KL2 title and win gold in the newly added VL3, which he has proven himself by winning with five world titles.

Curtis McGrath from Australia

Serhii Yemelianov (Ukraine) is the world and Paralympic champion in the men’s KL3 and is in strong form going into Tokyo 2020. But he will know that being the favourite does not guarantee success on the biggest stage. At Rio 2016, many considered German, Tom Kierey, the favourite, only for Yemelianov to excel in the final to take gold. 

 CYCLING ROAD

Timing: 9:30 - 15:30 JST

Five finals will be conducted in Women’s C4-5 Road Race, Men’s C1-3, Men’s T1-2, Women’s T1-2, and Mixed H1-5 Team Relay. 

Watch out for Carol Cooke (AUS), who is aiming to add a Paralympic medal to the three golds won at London 2012 (mixed time trial) and Rio 2016 (road race and time trial T2). Her journey in Para sports began in 2006 in Para rowing. Cooke narrowly missed out on being part of the Australian team at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. This led to cycling, which saw her go on a winning streak on the road until 2018. She needs to be in top form ahead of Tokyo, where she will face USA’s Jill Walsh, who beat her in both the women’s time trial and road race T2 at the 2019 World Championships.

 FOOTBALL 5-A-SIDE

Timing: Matches at 9:00, 11:30, 14:30, 19:30 JST

Brazil have won all gold medal in all the four editions held so far since the sport made its Paralympic debut in 2004. Men’s semifinals will be conducted with Brazil taking on Morocco and Argentina meeting China. 

 Morocco have had a taste of a few of their Tokyo 2020 Paralympic contenders at the 2018 World Championships, including Spain and Thailand. The African champions finished eighth in the competition, four positions above Thailand and seven past France. They also defeated Tokyo 2020 hosts Japan 5-1 in the Blind Soccer Challenge Cup in December 2019, a month after defending their African title.

 Watch out for Abderrazak Hattab (MAR), who is no stranger to making waves on the pitch. History-maker Hattab was part of the Moroccan side that made their debut at Rio 2016, becoming the first African team to compete at a Paralympic Games. He is the first player from the region to score a goal at that level.

A former goalball player, Hattab made the switch to football 5-a-side in 2013. His first appearance for the national squad came in 2014, followed shortly after with victory at the 2015 African Championships where the Moroccan was the top goal scorer. By 2017 he had become the team captain, leading his side to another regional title before reaching the quarter-finals of the 2018 World Championships…their best-ever finish. 

Hattab (right) was the first African player to score a goal in the Paralympics 

GOALBALL

Timing: Matches at 13:15, 15:00, 17:45, 19:30

Brazil take on Lithuania and China meet the United States in the men’s semi-finals. 

Watch out for Leomon Moreno (BRA), who has led Brazil’s march to the very top of the sport and has become an icon of goalball. From not qualifying for the World Championships in 2010 to gold at the next two editions - and a first Paralympic medal in between - Moreno has been right there.

In 2014 and 2018, he was the top scorer for Brazil’s two world titles. He coped with extreme pressure when his side played in the bronze medal match at their home Paralympics in 2016. Moreno kept his head in the game and scored the winning goal against Sweden to deliver his country a podium finish.

Leomon Moreno is one of Brazil's star goalball players

Mantas Panovas has led Lithuania to either finish on or challenge for the podium at the last five World Championships. Between 1998 and 2018, they collected two golds, one silver, and one bronze, and made it into every other bronze medal match. Panovas has been a crucial part of this journey. In 2018, he netted 36 goals to finish as the second-highest top scorer. 

SHOOTING

Timing: 8:45 - 15:30 JST

Only one final -- P3- Mixed 25m Pistol SH1 -- is on schedule. Among the top contenders will be China’s Li Min, Huang Xing, and Yang Chao. They could face some challenges from contenders from Turkey, Korea, Czech Republic, and Ukraine.

SITTING VOLLEYBALL

Timing: Matches at 18:30, 20:30 JST

Top contenders Brazil will take on the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) while Iran meets Bosnia and Herzegovina in the two men’s semi-finals. 

Iran is the most successful country in men’s section having won six titles. They are also the Rio 2016 winner. Bosnia and Herzegovina have won the title in 2004 and 2012. These two teams have contested the finals in the last five Paralympics. Brazil and Russia have never won the title but are the teams in form.

Iran is the greatest winner in men's sitting volleyball at the Paralympics

SWIMMING

Timing: 9:00 - 11:07 and 17:00 - 19:59 JST

Altogether 15 medal events will be conducted on the penultimate day of Para swimming in the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.

The men's 400m freestyle S6 will open the session. Italy's Antonio Fantin is the favourite to win the gold medal as the fastest Para swimmer this year. He set the best time at the Madeira 2020 European Open Championships in May where he won his first continental title. The 20-year-old Fantin is also a two-time world champion from London 2019 and Mexico City 2017.

In the women's 400m freestyle S6, Switzerland's Nora Meister is the world record holder and the fastest woman in the event this year. She won her first international title in the long-course race at the Madeira 2020 Euros. Meister caused a big upset in Portugal beating Ukraine's Rio 2016 Paralympic champion Yelyzaveta Mereshko. The Ukrainian had to settle for silver and for the second-best time of the year. Mereshko is the titleholder from the Dublin 2018 European Championships and a silver medallist from the London 2019 Worlds.

In the men's 100m butterflies S9 reigning European and world champion will be making his Paralympic debut in Tokyo. Italy's Simone Barlaam is one to watch in Japan. Two years ago at the World Championships in London, he split the gold medal with his compatriot Federico Morlacchi after a jaw-dropping finish.

Italy's Simone Barlaam 

Morlacchi is the silver medallist from Rio 2016, as well as a three-time World Championships medallist. Neither Morlacchi nor Barlaam are leading the rankings in 2021. Australia's William Martin is the fastest man in the event this year. He set the season-best at the National Trials in Adelaide in June where his compatriot Timothy Hodge swam the third-fastest time of the year. Barlaam is in second place with his performance at the Madeira 2020 Euros.

Ukraine's Maksym Krypak will be aiming for more gold in the men's 100m backstroke S10 and he has pretty good reasons for that. He is the current Paralympic champion, back-to-back European Championships gold medallist, and the titleholder from the London 2019 Worlds. Krypak is also the fastest man in the event this year in front of Italy's Stefano Raimondi. The Italian had to settle for a silver medal at the Dublin 2018 Euros, London 2019 Worlds, and Madeira 2020 Euros but will be looking at putting an end to Krypak's dominance in Tokyo.

Besides Zsofia Konkoly in the women's 100m butterfly S9, Hungary will be hoping for another medal on day nine. Bianka Pap is the fastest woman in the 100m backstrokes S10 this year, as well as a three-time European champion who took silver at the Rio Games five years ago. Dutch swimmer Lisa Kruger is the London 2019 world champion and another candidate to top the podium in Tokyo. She has the fourth-fastest time this year.

France's Anaelle Roulet is the second-fastest in 2021. She is yet to taste the feeling of winning an international title. The 25-year-old has a World Championships silver from Mexico City 2017 and a silver and bronze at the Europeans from Madeira 2020 and Dublin 2018, respectively.

The men's 100m backstrokes S14 finalist will be next in the pool. Australia's Ben Hance is the world record holder and the fastest man in 2021. The second-fastest time of the year belongs to Brazil's Gabriel Bandeira. He will be making his Games debut in Tokyo as the gold medallist from the Madeira 2020 European Open Championships in May. Bandeira beat London 2019 world champion Viacheslav Emeliantsev from the RPC in Portugal and the two may be sharing the podium again this time. 

The competition will be fierce though, as medal candidates in the men's 100m backstroke S14 include Marc Evers of the Netherlands (London 2012 Paralympic champion), USA's Lawrence Sapp (Mexico City 2017 world champion), and Great Britain's Jordan Catchpole (London 2019 Worlds silver).

Great Britain has the top contenders in the women's 100m backstroke S14 with Bethany Firth and Jessica-Jane Applegate. Firth is the two-time defending Paralympic champion and the world record holder. She set the fastest time of the year in April in Dublin and is the current world champion. Applegate is the second-fastest this year with a European title from Madeira added to her name. She took bronze in the race at the Rio 2016 Paralympics.

 The men's 50m backstroke S1 has Israel's Iyad Shalabi leading the way as the fastest man in 2021 and European champion from Madeira in May. Italy's Francesco Bettella is the second-fastest this year and the silver medallist from Madeira 2020. He also took silver at Rio 2016. The bronze medallist from the last Games, Ukraine's Anton Kol rounds up the top three this year. He also took bronze at Madeira 2020.

The men's 50m backstroke S2 has four top contenders. First in line is Brazil's Gabriel Araujo, who leads the 2021 rankings. Ukraine's Roman Bondarenko is the second on the list with a time that gave him the European title at Madeira 2020 in May. Jacek Czech from Poland and Alberto Abarza from Chile are the most experienced names in the event. Czech is the silver medallist from the last two European Championships and the London 2019 Worlds. Abarza is the reigning Parapan American Games champion from Lima in 2019 and the World Series 2021 winner

Following up will be the women's 50m backstroke S2 in which Singapore's Pin Xiu Yip has been the dominant force over the last five years. She is the reigning Paralympic and world champion, as well as the world record holder. Former member of Parliament in Singapore she set the best time this year at a national competition in July. It is almost three seconds faster than the one set by Japan's Miyuki Yamada who lies second in this year's rankings.

Reigning world champion Diego Lopez Diaz from Mexico will be trying to add the men's 50m freestyle S3 Paralympic gold to his CV. He has the fastest time in the race this year. Right behind Lopez Diaz is Ukraine's Serhii Palamarchuk, the second-fastest Para swimmer of the year and the reigning European champion from Madeira. His compatriot Denys Ostapchenko is third in the rankings. He finished behind Palamarchuk for silver at Madeira 2020 and has a bronze medal from the London 2019 Worlds.

World champion Diego Lopez Diaz (Mexico) swims for his first Paralympic gold in the men's 50m freestyle S3

In the men's 50m freestyle S4, another European champion leads the 2021 rankings. Israel's Ami Omer Dadaon will be aiming for gold in his Paralympic debut. His main rivals have plenty of Games experience. Japan's Takayuki Suzuki will be heading to his fifth Paralympics with the second-best time of the year.

France's Davide Smetanine has three Paralympic medals to his name, including a gold in this race at Beijing 2008. Czech Republic's Arnost Petracek and the RPC's Roman Zhdanov will seek their first taste of Paralympic glory in the event. Petracek is the Dublin 2018 European champion, while Zhdanov won a bronze medal at the London 2019 Worlds and the Madeira 2020 Euros.

Rachael Watson from Australia is coming to Tokyo as the favourite in the women's 50m freestyle S4. She is the world record holder and the defending Paralympic champion. She also set the second-fastest time of the year at the National Trials in June in Adelaide. Mexico's Nely Miranda is the bronze medallist from Rio 2016 and will try to go two better in Tokyo this time.

The last event on day nine will be the women's 4x100m medley relay 34 pts where Great Britain lead the way as the world record holder and reigning world champion. Australia will try to defend the Paralympic title won five years ago, while the USA has the potential to go all the way as the silver medallist from the last Paralympic Games and World Championships.

TABLE TENNIS

Timing: 10:00 - 13:00 JST and 17:00 - 21:00 JST

Three finals will be held in Men’s Team - Classes 1-3, Men’s Team - Class 8, and Men’s Team Class 3. China will be contending in all three finals, as well as in Women’s Team - Classes 1-3 and Women's Team Classes 6-8.

TAEKWONDO

Timing: 18:00 - 15:00 and 17:00 - 22:00 JST

Two gold medals will be awarded in Men’s K44 -61, Women’s K44-61 categories.

Bolor-Erdene Ganbat from Mongolia is the clear favourite in the men’s K44-61kg 

WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL

Timing: Matches at 18:15 and 20:45 

The two women’s semi-finals will have Germany take on the Netherlands while China will take on the United States.

The United States have three of the four editions contested since 2004 with Germany winning the gold in 2012 in London. They lost to the US in the Rio final and will be hoping for revenge. The Netherlands have won the bronze medal in 2012 and 2016 while China are in their maiden semi-finals.

WHEELCHAIR TENNIS

Timing: Matches will  be played from 10:00 JST onwards

Semi-final rounds will be held in both men and women’s singles. In the women's semis, Netherlands’ Diede de Groot will meet Britain’s Jordanne Whiley. De Groot is eyeing a Golden Slam, having won all the four Grand Slams so far. The top seed has not lost a single set in reaching the women’s singles semis.
 
Whiley, seeded fourth also had an easy passage to the last-four stage. De Groot enjoys a 12-2 head-to-head record. The other semifinal will have Japan’s second seed Yui Kamiji taking on another Dutch player: Aniek van Koot, the third seed. The Japanese star enjoys a 35-19 head-to-head record.
 
In men’s singles, Japanese top seed Shingo Kunieda will meet fifth-seeded Gordon Reid of Great Britain, while Alfie Hewitt, the second seed, will play Tom Egberink of the Netherlands. Hewitt was taken to three sets twice while progressing to the last four.

Local player Shingo Kunieda is in the men's singles semifinals 

In the Quad Singles final, Aussie Dylan Alcott will play Sam Schroder. Like de Groot, the Australian is going for a Golden Slam.  Alcott needed to call on his vast experience to beat 18-year-old Dutch opponent,  Niels Vink,  6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in a two hours and 28 minutes marathon on Tuesday.