Natalie du Toit continued her historical golden trail through the water at the Athens Paralympics with a stunning world record victory in the 400m freestyle on Friday night after Tadgh Slattery added yet another gold to South Africa’s coffers in the 100m breaststroke.
The Cape Town leg amputee left the field way back as she powered to a staggering 4min 28,09 that added to the 100 butterfly (world record), 100 freestyle (Paralympic record) and world record 200 IM that she has won this week.
Du Toit’s record-breaking performances in Athens — her 400m on Friday night lopped 7,06sec off her previous world mark set in Johannesburg last year — have marked her as the swimming phenomenon of these Games.
And she still has the 100 backstroke on Saturday and the 50 freestyle on Sunday. ”This has truly been a fantastic experience for me,” said Du Toit.
”My team-mates, the crowds, everything has been wonderful. I’m really much stronger in the longer distances. But I’ve improved my times here, and who could ask for more than that?”
Du Toit said she could still go faster.
”I started slow and my first turn was too quick. But I’m happy with the record. It was awesome. I’m getting a bit tired now, so I’m not hoping for much in the backstroke tomorrow.”
Canada’s Stephanie Dixon finished a full length behind Du Toit in 4:46,57, followed by Christiane Reppe of Germany (4:59,91) Du Toit, who lost her leg in a scooter accident just after the 2000 Sydney Olympics, has still not given up her dream of making it as an Olympian swimmer to Beijing 2008. Judging by her quality as an athlete, her grit and her positive attitude, chances are improving all the time that she will close the eight second gap on the Olympic qualifying time in the next four years.
Du Toit took things easy in her morning heat, and still set a Paralympic record of 4:43,66sec.
Du Toit and Slattery brought SA’s gold medal count to 11, and Phillippa Johnson won South Africa’s eighth silver medal in equestrian competition. Ernst van Dyk, in the 5 000m wheelchair race, and Duane Strydom, in the discus for cerebral palsy, added a second and third bronze to South Africa’s coffers.
Slattery, whose disability is cerebral palsy and deaf, made a spectacular comeback from retirement for gold in the 100m breaststroke at the Athens Paralympics on Friday night — then announced his retirement ”for good”.
He has been a wonderful ambassador for South Africa, and will especially be remembered for the manner in which he sang, in sign language, the national anthem as the SA flag was raised during the medal ceremony. There was hardly a dry eye among the lively South African supporters.
Slattery, a seasoned swimmer who excelled at Atlanta 1996, conceded to silver in the 200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke in Sydney 2000, after which he announced his retirement. His decision to return resulted in jubilation for the livewire swimmer, who powers through the water with his arms only as his legs trail behind him.
”Yes,” he bellowed after touching the side at 1min 33,01sec ahead of world record holder Kasper Engel of Holland who swam 1:35,98. Slattery came into the swimming competition bald-headed and raised his arms in triumph when he hauled himself out of the pool. He then kissed his biceps for their sterling work in the water.
‘Now I’m really going to retire,” said Slattery (33) through an interprator. ”I’ve just got the 50m freestyle to go, then I’m finished. My parents have supported me up to now and it’s time that I get a job. I had a fantastic swim, though I feel wonderful.”
Johnson, riding borrowed horse Burgmans Benedict, won her second silver medal at the Athens Paralympics in individual dressage at the Markopoulo Equestrian Centre on Friday.
Johnson, who earlier this week claimed silver in equestrian dressage, came close to gold with superb routines in the early rounds of the individual dressage, then succumbed to Norway’s Ann Cathrin Lubbe on Zanko — the same rider who won gold in their first encounter — with an overall percentage of 78.273. Lubbe took gold with 79.318 and Canada’s Karen Brain on Dasskara won bronze with 77.277.
Van Dyk set the pace for the entire race until the sprint down the main straight, but he lacked sting in the sprint for 10min 24,47sec third behind Kurt Fearnley of Australia (10:23,98) and Aaron Gordian (Mexico) 10:24,38.
”I’m very happy with my bronze,” said Van Dyk who also won silver in the 1500m. ”I didn’t want to get into any prangs before the 800 final tomorrow, so I played it safe up front. This is a very tough race, with the best 1500 and 10 000m athletes. It’s my first at this distance because I want to move up from the 400m” Van Dyk also competes in the marathon on Sunday.
Strydom, who is the world record holder with 36,07m. trailed at fourth throughout his discus with 30,16m, then put in a final throw of 32,96m to claim the bronze. Also at the Olympic Stadium cerebral palsy athlete Malcolm Pringle, winner of the 800m gold in a world record 1:58,90sec earlier in the week, finished seventh in the 200m final in 24,34sec.
He was limping from a strained right hamstring and summed it up for his team-mates when he said: ”I hope that the people back home realise now that the Paralympics is not a Mickey Mouse affair. The standard here is very high and improving all the time.”
Apt words, considering that Tim Sullivan of Australia won the gold medal in a world record 22,92sec. Consider too, that Zanele Situ, primed to defend her javelin Paralympic title, finished seventh in the discus with a 13,41m throw. In Sydney 2000, she won silver in the discus with a 12,54m throw.
Oscar Pistorius, the double amputee who was the sensational world record winner of the 200m, qualified second in his 100m heat in the morning session. He races the 100 final on Saturday. Pistorius ran 11,43sec against single amputee, American Marlon Shirley, who is the world record holder who lost his lower right leg in a landmine explosion in the war in Iraq.
Pistorius’ 11,43 is a world record for T43 class (double amputee).
”I’ve got to get more experience in the 100,” said Pistorius. ”I need to improve my starts.” Hilton Langenhoven also qualified for the 100 final on Saturday.
Sonja Lloyd finished ninth in the javelin, while cyclists Susan van Staden was 10th in the road time trial and Adriaan Nel failed to complete the course after a clash with another tricycle that damaged his rear wheel.
Stefan Herholdt was strong on the hills in his road race, but he fell back to ninth in the end. Chantell Stierman finished seventh in 60kg division weightlifting. Wendy Oliver finished 20th in individual freestyle equestrian competition.
In swimming Tiaan du Plessis was sixth in the 400 freestyle and Ebert Kleynhans, defending his 100 freestyle title, finished eighth.
SA medal count by Friday: Gold – 11: Natalie du Toit 100 butterfly (1:07,69 world record), 100 freestyle (1:02,83 paralympic record), 200 IM (2:29,98 world record), 400m freestyle (4:28,09 world record) Fanie Lombaard shot put (13,52m world record) Malcolm Pringle 800m (1:58,90sec world record) Oscar Pistorius 200m (21,97sec world record) Teboho Mokgalagadi 100m (13,05sec world record) Fanie Lombaard (discus 45,56m) Nicholas Newman (javelin 38,09m world record) Tadgh Slattery (100m breaststroke 1:33,01) Silver – eight: Scott Field 100 butterfly (1:01,75), 400 freestyle (4:30,19), 100 freestyle 55,36sec Ernst van Dyk 1500 wheelchair (3:05,29) Nathan Meyer 200 (22,96sec ) Hilton Langenhoven long jump 7,03m Phillipa Johnson (equestrian dressage) 69.871 percent, (Individual dressage) 78.273 percent. Bronze – three: Bev Mashinini javelin (22,96m) Ernst van Dyk (5000m wheelchair 10:24,47) Duane Strydom (discus 30,16m). – Sapa