Para Athletics: 400m gold medal for Maxime Carabin

It was on the Kobe track in Japan that the young athlete from the French-speaking Handisport League shone once again at the World Para Athletics Championships.

After dominating the heats with a championship record time of 52.50, Maxime Carabin could begin to dream of adding his name to the 400m wheelchair record books once again.

After a strong start, the young Belgian athlete was able to control the race as expected, keeping his Japanese rivals Tomoki Sato and Tatsuya Ito at bay and setting a new reference time of 53.06.

 "There was a lot of wind throughout the stadium," explains Maxime Carabin. "That didn't help the time, but the main goal was the medal. So I'm fully satisfied. I was able to get out in front and open up a small gap straight away. Then I just had to keep an eye on my rivals and adapt to the wind, especially in the corners."

This is the first medal for Paralympic Team Belgium at the 2024 World Para Athletics Championships. Last year in Paris, the Belgian delegation won six medals, including two for Maxime Carabin (gold in the 100m and 400m) and another two for Roger Habsch (gold in the 200m and silver in the 100m T51), who has yet to take to the track in Kobe... As for Peter Genyn, who also won two medals in 2023 (gold in the 100m and bronze in the 200m T51), he didn't make the trip to Japan, allowing him to prepare as much as possible for the Paralympic Games in Paris.

Hopefully, there will be more Belgian medals to follow at this international competition!