**Para Athletics, Wheelchair Tennis, and Para Rowing Take Center Stage on Day 2 of Paris 2024**
Day two of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games brings a flurry of activity with Para athletics, wheelchair tennis, and Para rowing. A series of Para athletics medals will be up for grabs, while the wheelchair tennis and Para rowing competitions also commence.
South African wheelchair tennis star Donald Ramphadi is set to kick off his campaign, looking to build on his recent success in Paris, where he claimed his first Grand Slam quad doubles title in 2023.
**Wheelchair Tennis Begins**
Wheelchair tennis gets underway at Roland-Garros with potential weather disruptions, as rain is forecast for the day. Despite this, the excitement is building. The men's singles event is especially open, with Tokyo 2020 champion and legendary player Shingo Kunieda retiring in 2023, leaving space for new challengers to emerge.
In the women's singles, Dutch sensation Diede de Groot is aiming for consecutive Paralympic gold medals, while Ramphadi, along with Lucas Sithole, will face Chile’s Francisco Cayulef and Diego Perez. Ramphadi is entering his Paralympic debut after a breakthrough year that saw him rise into the top five quad singles players in the world.
In the women’s doubles, American duo Dana Mathewson and Maylee Phelps will face off against Japan’s Momoko Ohtani and Saki Takamuro. Mathewson, a multiple-time champion at the 2023 Parapan American Games, is competing in her third Paralympics.
**Medal Contests in Para Athletics**
Para athletics, the largest sport of the Paralympics, will award 14 medals on Friday at Stade de France. The women’s discus F55 event promises an exciting contest, with China's Dong Feixia defending her Paralympic title, and Mexican athlete Rosa Maria Guerrero Cazares coming in hot after her 2023 World Championship win in Paris. Colombia’s Erica Maria Castano Salazar, who claimed victory at the 2024 World Championships in Kobe, is also a strong contender.
In the men’s 5000m T11, Brazil’s Yeltsin Jacques is the one to watch after setting a world record at Kobe 2024 and dominating at Tokyo 2020. Meanwhile, Tunisia’s Raoua Tlili, the world record holder in the women’s shot put F41, will look to add to her gold medal haul, having triumphed in Rio, Tokyo, and Kobe.
In the women’s long jump T11, Uzbekistan’s Asila Mirzayorova enters as the favorite, boasting back-to-back world championships in 2023 and 2024. Brazil’s Silvania Costa, a double Paralympic gold medallist, failed to qualify for Paris, leaving the field wide open.
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