Team USA scores pair of golden firsts while decorated Para-swimmer adds another gold to her collection

Tokyo, Japan - Table tennis and the para-triathlon brought Team USA more success, while the swimming pool has still been one of the hottest places for medaling at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.

Brad Snyder became the first American in history to the win the Para-triathlon on Saturday.
Brad Snyder became the first American in history to the win the Para-triathlon on Saturday.  © IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

Tabble tennis player Ian Seidenfeld (20) pulled off an upset of the defending Paralympic champion, Peter Rosenmeier of Denmark, in straight sets (11-9, 11-8, 11-8) to win his first-career gold medal.

The Class 6 matches feature competitors who have impairments that affect their limbs, in stature or mobility.

Rosenmeier came into the match as the number-one Paralympic table tennis player in the world, a ranking that might likely be in danger after Saturday.

Also on Saturday, Navy veteran Brad Snyder won his first para-triathlon gold medal, adding to his already extensive collection by coming in first with a winning time of 1:01:16. Snyder already had seven medals from previous para-triathlons coming into this race.

Snyder, who is vision-impaired, is the first American to win the gold medal in this event in Paralympic history.

He, along with his guide Greg Billington, a 2016 US Olympian, finished ahead of Spaniard Héctor Catalá Laparra (1:02:11), who came in second, while Satoru Yoneoka of Japan took bronze (1:02:20).

Superstar swimmer makes her 25th medal a golden one

Jessica Long of the United States won her 25th Paralympic medal in the women's 200-meter Individual Medley SM8 final on Saturday.
Jessica Long of the United States won her 25th Paralympic medal in the women's 200-meter Individual Medley SM8 final on Saturday.  © IMAGO / Xinhua

Jessica Long won the women's 200-meter Individual Medley SM8 final on Saturday for her 25th Paralympic medal in her career. This is also the fourth-straight gold she’s won in this particular event.

The SM8 events include athletes who compete with amputations and cerebral palsy.

Long touched the wall first with a winning time of 2:41:49, beating out Italy’s Xenia Francesca Palazzo, who took silver in 2:47:86. For the bronze, Mariia Pavlova of the Russian Paralympic Committee finished at 2:48:63.

The 400-meter freestyle, 100-meter breaststroke, and 100-meter butterfly events are still ahead for Long as she hopes to find herself on the podium at least once more before leaving Tokyo.

Cover photo: IMAGO / Eibner Europe

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