El Idrissi Shatters Women's Marathon World Record at Paralympics

Fatima Ezzahra El Idrissi from Morocco set a new world record in the women's marathon for visually impaired runners at the Paralympic Games. She completed the race in 2 hours, 48 minutes, and 36 seconds on Sunday. This time surpassed the previous record held by Japan's Misato Michishita by nearly six minutes. "I wasn't running for a time, only for a medal," said the 29-year-old Moroccan. "I wasn't aiming to get the world record, just to get the gold, and now I have both."

Elena Congost initially thought she had secured bronze but was later disqualified for releasing her guide, Mia Carol Bruguera, before finishing. Michishita discovered she had been upgraded to bronze while heading to doping control. "I just couldn't believe it," said Michishita, who had been uncertain about racing in Paris due to an injury after winning in Tokyo.

Wheelchair Marathon Victories

Swiss wheelchair racers Catherine Debrunner and Marcel Hug triumphed in the T53/54 categories. Debrunner, the world record holder, finished in 1:41:50, over four minutes ahead of Australia's Madison de Rozario and the United States' Susannah Scaroni, who took silver and bronze respectively. Tatyana McFadden, the most decorated American wheelchair racer, finished seventh, just over 12 minutes behind Debrunner.

Marcel Hug won the men's race in 1:27:39, beating China's Jin Hua and Japan's Tomoki Suzuki. British wheelchair racer David Weir announced his Paralympic retirement at age 45 after finishing fifth in the men's race. Weir won six Paralympic golds, including four at the London Games in 2012 when he won the marathon but failed to medal in three Games since.

Powerlifting World Record

Nigeria's Folashade Oluwafemiayo broke her own world record in women's para powerlifting by bench-pressing 167 kilograms. The 39-year-old lifted one kilo more than her previous best from Tbilisi in June. She delighted spectators at La Chapelle Arena by setting this new mark during the final for women over 86kg. Iran's Ahmad Aminzadeh won gold in the men's final for athletes over 107kg with a lift of 263 kilograms.

China's Dominance

China dominated the Paralympics with almost twice as many gold medals as any other country. They secured 94 golds out of a total of 220 medals. Britain followed with 49 golds among their 124 medals, while the US earned 105 medals with 36 golds. Brazilian athletes won 89 medals, but Dutch athletes secured more golds—27 compared to Brazil's 25.

The Netherlands women's team defended their gold medal in wheelchair basketball with a 63-49 win over the United States. Bo Kramer scored 23 points and Mariska Beijer added 22 as they led their team to victory at Bercy Arena. Despite trailing going into the fourth quarter, American players remained hopeful but couldn't overcome the Dutch lead.

Tunisia's Wajdi Boukhili won the men's T12 marathon, finishing in 2 hours, 22 minutes, and 5 seconds. He was followed by Spain's Alberto Suarez Laso and Morocco's El Amin Chentouf, who holds the Paralympic record. All three runners achieved season-best times.

Host nation France finished eighth on the medal table with a total of 75 medals, including 19 golds. The closing ceremony was scheduled for later Sunday at Stade de France with artistic director Thomas Jolly promising a grand dance party.