By Tom Pilcher
LONDON, Sept 8 (Reuters) – South Africa’s Oscar Pistorius
brought the curtain down on a summer of thrills in the Olympic
Stadium when he won the final Paralympic track gold medal with a
dominant display in the men’s 400 metres on Saturday.
It was a happy ending for Pistorius who finished the
Paralympic Games with an individual gold after failing to
successfully defend the 100 and 200 titles he won in Beijing
four years ago. He also won a gold medal in the 4×100 relay.
Pistorius finished nearly four seconds ahead of his nearest
rival, Blake Leeper who was followed home by David Prince of the
United States, while Brazil’s Alan Oliveira, who beat the South
African in the 200 this week, finished fourth.
“This whole month, this whole season, I’ve had a lot of
challenges and I have a lot to thank my coach for,” Pistorius,
who also competed in the London Olympics last month, told
Channel Four television.
“I’m so proud, this summer has been a dream come true and I
couldn’t hope for anything better. It’s my 11th time on this
track and I wanted to give the crowd something special that they
could take home with them.”
Pistorius was the heavy favourite with a personal best more
than five seconds quicker than the next fastest competitor and
from the moment he built a commanding lead shortly after the
halfway point the result was never in doubt.
The original “Blade Runner” said he had been unsure how
Oliveira would approach the race after the Brazilian slowed down
in the final 100 metres of his heat.
“I didn’t know what sort of race Oliveira would run. He went
out very fast in his heat and then jogged the last 100,” said
the 25-year-old of his rival, who tired towards the end. “It was
a great race for me.”
Continued…
