Athens - Pretoria schoolboy sprinter Oscar Pistorius was the focus of high drama at the Athens Paralympics on Monday evening.
He fell coming out of the start of his 200m heat for leg amputees, then showed mind-blowing speed and tenacity to surge from stone last to victory in a world record 23.42sec for double-amputees.
The 17-year-old Pretoria High learner cried tears mingled with frustration and relief after his first bitter-sweet Paralympic experience.
"I've never been so scared in all my life out there," said the likeable youngster who was born with no shin bones. "Oh man, I fell flat on my knees and hands. It was pure adrenalin that made me chase the field down."
Pistorius showed astounding quality as he was the only double-amputee in the field and he was primed to go for the world single-amputee record of 22.71. "I'm through to the final tomorrow, that's what counts," he said. "I must make sure there are no mistakes then."
Scott Field, South Africa's visually impaired swimmer, won his second silver medal of the Paralympics when he finished a strong second in the men's 400m freestyle at the Aquatic Centre.
Nathan Meyer (visually impaired) was charged up for gold in his 200m final, "but I fell out of rhythm coming round the bend," he said after his 22.96sec third place. "A part of me is disappointed, but I'm proud to win bronze for my country."
Field, who won silver in the 100m butterfly on Sunday night, adding to the world record gold medals won by Natalie du Toit (100 butterfly) and Fanie Lombaard (shot put), swam 4min 30,19sec against the 4:28.84 that earned Walter Wu of Canada the gold medal.
SA's Charl Bouwer finished eighth in 4:49.39.
"I took it pretty easy in the heats this morning and my plan was to go out hard in the final," said Field afterwards. "I was watching the other guys, but I didn't see the guy who beat me because he was too far away. I was in lane five and he was way against the side in lane one. It's a pity because maybe I could have tried to go for him."
During the morning heats, SA sensation leg-amputee Natalie du Toit swam a Paralympic record 1min 02.92 sec in the women's 100m freestyle to go through to the final as the favourite for her second gold medal later on Monday night. Her time was 0,12sec off her world record which she set in Barcelona in 2003.
In wheelchair tennis Hubbard Adrian and Victor Joppie went down 2-0 to Herbert Baumgartner and Martin Legner of Austria.
