Niringiyimana receives Allianz Athlete of the Month for April

The Rwandan taekwondo athlete took silver at his first international competition. 09 May 2017
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Man in taekwondo uniform at a competition

Rwanda's Jean Claude Niringiyimana at the 2015 African Open

ⒸWorld Taekwondo Federation
By IPC

Rwanda's taekwondo athlete Jean Claude Niringiyimana has been voted as the Allianz Athlete of the Month for April after his performance at the African Para Taekwondo Open in Kigali, Rwanda.

At his first ever international competition, Niringiyimana took the silver medal in the men’s under 61kg K44. He overcame Lesotho’s Phoofolo Mokhethi in a tight 7-6 duel on his way to the finals, only falling to Spain’s No. 3 ranked Aythami Santana. Niringiyimana entered May’s world ranking tied for 13th.

He received 76 per cent of the public votes. Canadian Para ice hockey player Adam Dixon was second with 17 per cent. Swiss wheelchair racer Manuela Schar, Australian Para table tennis player Melissa Tapper and US Para ice hockey player Declan Farmer were also nominated.

The 2017 winners so far are:

January –Jeroen Kampschreur, Netherlands, alpine skiing

February – Veronika Vadovicova, Slovakia, shooting

March – Maria Paula Barrera, Colombia, swimming

April – Jean Claude Niringiyimana, Rwanda, taekwondo