Perfect start for Alessandro Zanardi (IT) to the Paralympic* para-cycling competitions at Rio de Janeiro (BR): In today’s time trial, the 49-year old Italian raced to gold in the H5 category with his handbike. For Zanardi this is the third Paralympic gold medal of his career after winning twice gold and one silver medal at the London games in 2012.
Perfect start for Alessandro Zanardi (IT) to the Paralympic* para-cycling competitions at Rio de Janeiro (BR): In today’s time trial, the 49-year old Italian raced to gold in the H5 category with his handbike. For Zanardi this is the third Paralympic gold medal of his career after winning twice gold and one silver medal at the London games in 2012.
The time trial saw athletes tackle two laps of a ten-kilometre course along the coastline of Pontal near Rio de Janeiro. Zanardi completed the distance of 20 kilometres in the fastest time of 28:36.81 minutes, securing gold in the first of the three races he is competing in in Rio. He had an advantage of 2.7 seconds over silver medallist Stuart Tripp (AU). The bronze medal went to Oscar Sanchez (US).
“It has been a long journey, which basically started the day after the London games, when I decided that I would focus on a new horizon in my life and that this would be Rio,” Zanardi said. “You also need to know that the stadium and the facilities in Rio are built where they used to have the Indycar circuit. I have always been fast on that circuit, but never won a race. So deep inside I thought that this would be another opportunity to correct this and to finally do something in Rio de Janeiro. After the exciting years of preparation and coming here to a course that was not really my kind of course, it is just fantastic to finally enjoy the taste of gold once more.”
Perfect start for Alessandro Zanardi (IT) to the Paralympic* para-cycling competitions at Rio de Janeiro (BR): In today’s time trial, the 49-year old Italian raced to gold in the H5 category with his handbike. For Zanardi this is the third Paralympic gold medal of his career after winning twice gold and one silver medal at the London games in 2012.
The time trial saw athletes tackle two laps of a ten-kilometre course along the coastline of Pontal near Rio de Janeiro. Zanardi completed the distance of 20 kilometres in the fastest time of 28:36.81 minutes, securing gold in the first of the three races he is competing in in Rio. He had an advantage of 2.7 seconds over silver medallist Stuart Tripp (AU). The bronze medal went to Oscar Sanchez (US).
“It has been a long journey, which basically started the day after the London games, when I decided that I would focus on a new horizon in my life and that this would be Rio,” Zanardi said. “You also need to know that the stadium and the facilities in Rio are built where they used to have the Indycar circuit. I have always been fast on that circuit, but never won a race. So deep inside I thought that this would be another opportunity to correct this and to finally do something in Rio de Janeiro. After the exciting years of preparation and coming here to a course that was not really my kind of course, it is just fantastic to finally enjoy the taste of gold once more.”
