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Israel dominates Paralympics with more medal-winning performances

Amir Dadaon shatters world record while teammate Mark Malyar wins third medal.

By David Hellerman, World Israel News

Israeli swimmers Ami Dadon and Mark Malyar increased their haul of medals and record-breaking performances at the Tokyo Paralympic Games on Monday.

Dadon won the 200-meter freestyle in a world record 2:44.84 minutes, shattering his own world record by six seconds.

The 20-year-old swimmer, who has cerebral palsy, already bagged a silver medal on Saturday in the men’s 150-meter individual medley.

Also on Monday, fellow swimmer Mark Malyar took bronze in the 100 meter backstroke with a time of 1:10.08 minutes. The medal was Malyar’s third of the Paralympics. On Friday, he set a world record in the men’s 200-meter individual medley

And Malyar isn’t done: the 21-year-old is still due to swim in the 50 meter butterfly and 50 meter freestyle competitions.

Malyar has cerebral palsy and swimming has been part of his therapy from a young age. His twin brother, Ariel, who also has cerebral palsy, is also swimming in the Tokyo Paralympics.

On the first day of the Paralympics, Iyad Shalabi won a gold medal in the 100-meter S1 backstroke. S1 is a category of difficulty based on the contestant’s level of disability. The 34-year-old made history by becoming the first Arab to win an Olympic or Paralympic medal for Israel.

Deaf from birth, Shalabi was seriously injured in an accident at the age of 13 and was left paralyzed from the waist down. He uses a wheelchair in his daily life.

And on Sunday, rower Moran Samuel took a silver medal in the women’s 2,000-meter single sculls. Samuel, now 39, suffered a spinal stroke in her 20s, but that hasn’t stopped her from competing on the international stage at the highest levels. She is also a paralympic basketball player.