Jetze Plat plans to run a leisurely marathon on Sunday after winning three endurance gold medals at the Paris 2024 Paralympics. (No joke) The 33-year-old won the men’s PTWC Para triathlon on Monday. His third straight Paralympic gold in that event.
Wednesday brought him gold in the Para road bicycle individual time trial H4. He won it again at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. On Thursday, the Dutch flagbearer at the Opening Ceremony won the Para-cycling H4 road event and defended his championship.
‘A machine’
Several crashes occurred throughout the wet race. Austrians Plat and Thomas Fruehwirth led a breakaway for most of the race. The Dutch rider attacked in the last seconds.
Plat was thrilled to finish at Clichy-sous-Bois and raised his arms. Today’s race was chaotic. Rain made it slick. He avoided risk.
Plat completed it in 1:29:15. Fruehwirth finished second after 31 seconds. Rafal Wilk from Poland placed third despite being five minutes behind the winner. It was a lot of fun. I am doing it for that. I want to be the best. Jetze is the best. Frehwirth said it was an honor to compete against him. After Sunday’s 42.195 km men’s marathon (T54), Plat may celebrate.
Your focus should be on healing. The past several days have been tough. I don’t lead the race. I might win an award but am not an expert. Only seeing will tell. He pledged everything. Marathon riding was his new ambition after Tokyo. Some pressure is gone, he remarked.
Flag attack
Mitch Valize won the individual time trial and the men’s H5 road race on the same day, thus Dutch cycling will be excellent. Both events were won by him.
He finished. Vaize defeated Frenchman Loic Vergnaud, while Ukrainian Pavlo Bal placed third. He laughed off the Dutch flag blowing into his face before the finish.
He said that the flag flapped into his face instead of being held above his head. I feared riding into the barriers before the finish line, so I was glad I could see through it.” Only once did I feel out of control of the race.
Masters offers a masterclass
Meanwhile, American Oksana Masters earned her second Paris gold and 19th overall in the women’s H5 road event. She must get extra socks. Because I enjoy socks, I keep them in socks. “I’m not a medal person,” she remarked. A Ukrainian orphanage raised this 35-year-old man. He earned Paralympic medals in rowing, cycling, and Nordic skiing in Summer and Winter.
Feeling joyful makes me cry.” After the race, she told reporters, “I feel dizzy.” Masters, Sun Bianbian from China, Maria Ana Vitelaru from Italy, and German veteran Andrea Eskau led the race for most of it.
It was impossible to track everyone on the climb. They seemed sturdy enough.”She claimed they let me go because I’m a strong climber. I stopped attacking after seeing that because I didn’t want to be too weary to climb the last mountain.” Let’s work together for a while. London and Rio gold medalist Eskau, 53, didn’t make the podium. Sun was second, Vitelaru third.
