Paralympic champion Yang Qian clinched the first Para table tennis gold medal of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in the women’s singles C6-10 event. The Tokyo 2020 women’s singles C10 champion emerged victorious in an all-Australian final against Li Na Lei, winning in four closely contested games.
Yang took the first two sets in tiebreaks, 12-10 and 16-14, before Lei, the singles C9 Paralympic gold medallist, leveled the match by taking the third set 11-7. The fourth set proved to be a closely fought affair, but Yang secured the win with an 11-9 victory to claim the gold medal.
“Both Yang and Lei had previously represented China, and Australian head coach Alois Rosario praised their ‘experience of understanding what it actually takes to win a Paralympic [Games] gold medal.'”
Nigeria’s Faith Obazuaye, the Gold Coast 2018 silver medallist, claimed the bronze medal in the women’s singles C6-10 event, coming from behind to defeat England’s Felicity Pickard.
In the men’s singles C3-5 final, C5 Paralympic bronze medallist Jack Hunter-Spivey of England defeated Nigeria’s Nasiru Sule in four games. Isau Ogunkunle of Nigeria took the bronze medal in the event, beating India’s Raj Aravindan Alagar.
The women’s C3-5 gold medal went to Bhavina Hasmukhbhai Patel of India, the C4 Paralympic silver medallist, who defeated Nigeria’s Ifechukwude Christiana Ikpeoyi in straight games. Patel’s compatriot, Sonalben Manubhai Patel, claimed the bronze medal.
The table tennis action at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games continues on the final day with the men’s singles classes 8-10 final between Australia’s Lin Ma and Wales’ Joshua Stacey.
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