The athletics queen of the Paralympics in Paris ensures a golden finish. Catherine Debrunner also lives up to her role as favorite in the marathon.
Catherine Debrunner - who else. After winning gold on the track in the 5000 m, 1500 m, 800 m and 400 m (and silver in the 100 m), the 29-year-old from eastern Switzerland was also unbeatable in her Paralympic debut over the historic distance.
The dominator made sure things were clear early, very early. She set a pace in the first few meters that her rivals were unable to match. She quickly pulled away and ran a lonely race at the front. She completed the first half of the course two minutes faster than the next best runners and crossed the finish line almost four and a half minutes ahead of the Australian Madison de Rozario, the marathon and 800 m winner in Tokyo three years ago.
For Catherine Debrunner, the marathon was not only a triumphant ride, but also a borderline experience "that I have never had before. It was a great struggle on a difficult course. Especially the sections with the cobblestones were very questionable for us wheelchair users. I don't know where else I got this energy from."
Things didn't go quite as planned for Manuel Schär. Nothing came of his third medal at these Paralympics after gold in the 800 m and silver in the 400 m. The Lucerne native, who was also a contender for a podium place, finished in fourth place, almost three minutes behind the bronze medal winner, Susannah Scaroni from the USA. Patricia Eachus from Zurich, the third Swiss participant, followed in 11th place.
SDA
