Paralympics (Day 10 Women): Jessica Long Caps Games with 29th Medal, 16th Gold

Jessica Long - Photo Courtesy: Arena

Paralympics (Day 10 Women): Jessica Long Caps Games with 29th Medal, 16th Gold

Jessica Long finished the Tokyo Paralympics with another line item on her unparalleled CV, winning the women’s S8 100 butterfly for her 29th career Paralympic medal and 16th career gold.

Long bested the field with a time of 1:09.87. She edged Viktoriia Ishchiulova by .93 seconds, with no one else in the field within 10 seconds of the winning pair. It’s Long’s sixth medal of the Tokyo Paralympics and third gold medal.

“I truly have always said the Paralympics are for those who are super-mentally tough and that is what I tried to channel today because I was tired and hurting and sore,” Long said. “But I love swimming and I love to race and that is what I tried to do tonight.”

5x Paralympian and 29x Paralympic medalist. @JessicaLong has been winning Paralympic medals since she was 12.

Please pause and let that greatness sink in. #TokyoParalympics pic.twitter.com/CyolEDCjms

— Team USA (@TeamUSA) September 3, 2021

The Americans finished the competition strong. Elizabeth Marks led the way, setting a world record in the S6 100 backstroke. She turned in a 1:19.57 to chop nearly two seconds off the world record that Song Lingling set in Rio in 2016. Marks won by more than a second.

The medal is Marks’ third of the games, one of each color.

“There’s so many people that put so much time and energy into me that I hope this just shows how grateful I am,” Marks said. “And there’s a lot of people who don’t get the opportunity to race, so I try to do them proud as well.”

2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games

Jiang Yuyan of China won silver in an Asian record 1:20.65, and Verena Schott’s European record of 1:21.16 earned bronze.

Mallory Weggemann earned a silver medal, her third medal of the Games, in the S7 50 butterfly. She posted a time of 34.40, just .02 ahead of the European record set by Giulia Terzi.

Weggemann was denied gold by the stellar swim of Danielle Dorris, who set a second world record of the day in going 32.99 to take the victory.

“I’m very happy I was not expecting to go that time that I went,” Dorris said. “I was hoping for 33-low. I’ll take the 32-high, I’m very happy and it couldn’t have gone better. …

“This one means so much more because it is very much the event that I love the most. So being able to medal, let alone being gold, is very special to me.”

Anastasia Pagonis set an American record of 1:06.65 in the S11 100 freestyle, but she finished off the podium in fourth by .11 seconds.

Liu Yu set her second world record of the day in the S4 50 backstroke, clocking in at 44.68 seconds. That’s more than a second faster than her mark from prelims and let a China 1-2 with Zhou Yanfei.

China’s Lu Dong won the SM5 200 individual medley in 3:20.53, an Asian record. She just held off the charge by countrywoman Jiao Cheng, who took silver .27 seconds back. Li Guizhi lowered her Paralympic record from the morning to grab gold in the S11 100 free, edging out Lisette Bruinsma of the Netherlands and Cai Liwen.

The Netherlands landed two on the podium on the SM10 200 IM, led by a world record of 2:24.85 by Chantalle Zijderveld. It undercuts Sophie Pascoe’s world record by .05 seconds. Lisa Kruger won bronze after Hungary’s Bianka Pap. Aurelie Rivard set the Americas record at 2:28.73, but the Canadian was denied a sixth medal of these Games.

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