China's Para biathlete Liu wins men's individual sitting at Beijing 2022

CHONGLI, Zhangjiakou - Liu Mengtao, 20, has become the first Chinese Para biathlete to win three medals (two golds and a bronze) at a Winter Paralympic Games, after claiming the men's individual sitting title at Beijing 2022 here on Friday.

Having taken the sprint bronze on March 5 and the middle distance gold on March 8, Paralympic debutant Liu finished first in the 12.5km race in 38 minutes and 29.4 seconds without missing a single shot in the four rounds of prone shooting.

"The race wasn't easy. Haven't you seen my face when I was on the track, twisted and in pain? I mean it's 12.5 kilometers. And the snow was pretty slow today," said Liu Mengtao, who took up the sport in 2016.

"I could have shot faster today. Miss one shot and you get a one-minute penalty, so I'd rather lie there for a few more seconds to make sure I don't miss the shot," Liu added.

"It's good to see the national flag and hear the national anthem," he noted. "I still have a cross-country race coming tomorrow."

22-year-old Taras Rad from Ukraine, who was the gold medalist in the race at PyeongChang 2018, settled for silver this time in 39:13.9, also with a clean sheet of shooting. Rad had also finished second in the sprint and third in the middle distance at Beijing 2022.

"This race was very important for me because this was my last biathlon race (at Beijing 2022). Of course, I had hopes that it could be gold, but silver is OK too. I am happy for this result and want to thank the whole team who is supporting me," said Rad.

24-year-old Liu Zixu, who had grabbed the first-ever Paralympic individual gold for China in the men's sprint sitting on March 5, took the bronze in 39:35.5 with one shot missing.

"My energy level has dropped from previous races. My stamina used to be pretty good. I'm not sure whether it's the snow today or something else, (but) I wasn't in my best form today," said Liu Zixu.

"I have finished all my races at Beijing 2022. Now I feel happy and relaxed," he added.

A total of 20 biathletes from China, Ukraine, Canada, Kazakhstan, Germany, South Korea, Britain, and the United States attended the men's individual sitting race on Friday.