New Delhi
Bulgarian para-athlete Ruzhdi secured his sixth straight gold medal in the men’s shot put F55 event with a world record throw at the World Para Athletics Championships on Sunday.
The 34-year-old achieved the record in his final attempt, throwing 12.94m to surpass his own mark of 12.68m, set at the 2023 Paris World Championships. Competing from a seated position due to loss of lower limb function, Ruzhdi once again proved his dominance. Serbia’s Nebojsa Duric won silver with a personal best of 12.52m, while Poland’s Lech Stoltman took bronze with 12.02m.
This victory continued Ruzhdi’s remarkable streak, as he has now won gold in every edition since the 2015 Doha Championships. It was also his third world-record-winning performance. Ruzhdi’s journey is especially inspiring, as he survived a car crash that left him paralysed waist down but never stopped chasing sporting excellence.
The championships saw several other record-breaking performances. Malaysia’s Abdul Latif Romly won his third consecutive men’s long jump T20 gold with a world record leap of 7.67m. Romly, 28, now has five golds and a silver, with his only defeat coming in Dubai in 2019. Ukraine’s Volodymyr Ponomarenko also set a men’s shot put T12 world record, reaching 17.39m on his second attempt.
In women’s events, Algeria’s Nassima Saifi claimed her sixth discus throw F57 gold with a best of 34.54m, far ahead of China’s Tian Yuxin. Switzerland’s Catherine Debrunner won the women’s 5000m T54 wheelchair race in 12:18.29, powering ahead after the 3km mark to defeat China’s Tian Yajuan and teammate Patricia Eachus.
