Paralympics | Simone Kruger lights up Paralympics with discus Gold for Team SA

Simone Kruger is only 19, but she arrived in the French capital as the world champion and the world record holder in the F38 discus. 

Paralympic gold and a Paralymoic record for Kruger at Paris

All that was missing on her ever-growing CV was Paralympic gold and a Paralymoic record. Tick. Tick. She achieved both at the Stade de France on Friday night.

This is her second Paralympics and she’s already a veteran before turning 20. She finished fifth in the F38 discus final at Tokyo 2020 when she produced an effort of 31.51m, but since then her career has been on an upward trajectory.

For the past two years she has has won the world title, with the distance stretching out to 38.82m in Kobe in May. That was also a world record for the classification and the teenager landed in Paris as gold medal favourite.

Kruger didn’t disappoint, with a best throw of 38.70m, her third, being enough to take the gold medal, the second of Team SA’s campaign at these Paralympics and their fifth medal overall, with the Games concluding on Sunday. And with it came a new Games record.

She has been with her father and coach Andries – also an enthusiastic photographer – in the days leading up to the most important moment of her career so far, and she has only added to her reputation as one of the stars of the sport.

Kruger had opened with a Paralympic record of 37.69m, which was 4.51m further than the previous mark set at Tokyo 2020 by Rosa Castro of Mexico. Kruger’s first attempt was however, short of the world record 38.82m she had set at the World Championships in May.

However, there was some stiff competition. After that opening round the South African was lying in the bronze medal position, with China’s Yingli Li achieving a distance of 38.46m, which was a personal best and Colombian Xiomara Hernandez also breaking the old Paralympic record with 38.27m.

Kruger knew she needed to go bigger. And she did, with a second effort of 38.35m regaining the new Paralympic mark and back into silver, 11cm behind the gold medal position of Li. Her third mark was even better, 38.70m. Now only 12cm off her world record, but more importantly for now, into the gold medal slot.

Her first three throws had got progressively better, 1.01m better in fact from that opening attempt to her third. Her fourth throw was 37.59m. Two throw left, still leading. Her penultimate effort landed just wide of the lines. One throw left. If it wasn’t bettered by any of her seven remaining rivals she would be crowned gold medallist regardless of her remaining attempt.

One by one they fell by the wayside and when Li came up 6cm short on her last effort Kruger was home.

By GARY LEMKE in Paris

Photo: ROGER SEDRES