The Paris Paralympics concluded yesterday with the Chinese team ranking first in the medal tally, earning a total of 220 medals, including 94 gold, 76 silver and 50 bronze. This is the sixth consecutive time that the country has ranked number one in the Paralympic medal table – a streak that began at the 2004 Games in Athens.
Great Britain and the US were placed in a distant second and third place, bagging 124 and 105 medals respectively.
In terms of individual sports, China earned a large proportion of its medals from athletics where it bagged 59 medals, and swimming, which contributed 54 medals. The country’s other strong performances came in table tennis (24 medals) and fencing (19 medals).
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The world’s second most populous nation managed to shatter 29 records. In the pool, swimmer Lu Dong set a new world paralympic time for women’s 50m butterfly, with a time of 38.17 seconds.
Macao’s sole Paralympian at the Paris Games, 17 year old Chio Hao Lei, took 15th place in the women’s long jump T20. Neighbouring SAR Hong Kong meanwhile managed to earn a ranking of 32nd, with a total of 8 medals.
Macao has participated in the Paralympics since 1988, although it has not won medals at any of the Games so far. For historical reasons, the SAR is only permitted to participate in the Paralympics, although it is striving to earn a spot in the Olympics.
