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Para-canoeist
Edina Müller
: Gold in the sprint over 200 meters
Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand / dpa
Edina Müller
won her first gold medal in a canoe at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.
The 38-year-old prevailed on the Sea Forest Waterway in the final over 200 m in 53.958 seconds ahead of the Ukrainian Marina Maschula (+0.847 seconds) and thus won her second precious metal in her new sport after silver in Rio.
The Hamburg native had previously won gold and silver as a wheelchair basketball player.
“At that moment you just feel like you've done everything right.
There have been a lot of doubters all along, a lot of people who didn't believe in me.
Standing there with the gold medal is madness, "said Müller:" Of course, an unbelievable burden falls off you.
It was one of the best races. "
With her preliminary victory on Thursday she was allowed to skip the semifinals in the starting class KL1 and was able to save energy for the finals. Müller is the only German athlete to have offspring in Japan, and her two-year-old son Liam still has to be breastfed. Therefore, the paraplegic canoeist had to live in a hotel outside of the Paralympic village in Corona times and thus make extra efforts.
Young talent
Felicia Laberer
won bronze on her Paralympics debut. The 20-year-old, who only switched from swimming to canoeing in 2018, paddled third in the starting class KL3 in 51.868 seconds and won her second international medal after winning the European Championship. “Fantastic, I'm speechless,” said the Berliner: “We're the party unit anyway. Tonight it's going to be real. "
Perhaps the celebration will also
comfort
Anja Adler
, who was sad after finishing fourth. After the semi-final victory, she “started dreaming a bit,” said the 32-year-old from Halle: “I also drove the best race of the season. It's a shame that it's only fourth. But with a bit of a gap, the joy may outweigh the odds. ”In Paris 2024, it will definitely be at the starting line:“ I still have an account to be paid ”.