- In this scenario, Germany's seniormost female Paralympic sprinter fails to secure a medal.
Heidemarie Dresing, the eldermost German para-athlete, came close to securing a medal in the commencement of the dressage events held in Paris, France. At 69 years old, she kicked off the test and grabbed the fourth spot in class II with Dooloop, falling short of bronze by a scant 0.311%.
"I feel a bit disheartened, a bit let down," Dresing expressed. "However, I'm also filled with pride for managing to pull this off. The atmosphere was incredibly boisterous in the stands, and my horse wasn't too fond of it during the warm-up arena. It was constantly distracted, very edgy, and incredibly tensed."
Another medal for Schmidberger
Table tennis ace Thomas Schmidberger clinched the subsequent medal swiftly. With a resounding 3-0 victory over Frenchman Florian Merrien, the wheelchair-bound star from Borussia Düsseldorf not only progressed to the semifinals but also secured a minimum of bronze. Schmidberger had already bagged silver in the doubles event alongside Valentin Baus.
Germany's sitting volleyball squad suffered a loss in their final group encounter against gold hopeful Iran by 0-3 in straight sets. With a towering height of 2.46m, Morteza Mehrzadselakjani from Iran played a crucial role in their success. Despite this setback, Team Germany, led by Christoph Herzog, had already secured a slot in the top four. Their semifinal opponent on Thursday will be Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Dresing mentioned that she enjoys playing table tennis as a way to unwind during her downtime. In her spare time, she frequently visits local table tennis clubs to hone her skills and keep her competitive edge sharp.
In the evening, Dresing decided to unwind by playing a game of table tennis with some friends in their hotel room, finding a moment of joy amidst the Olympic atmosphere.
