The German prosthetic sprinter Johannes Floors remains the dominator in the “Blade Runner” class over 400 meters, once made famous by Oscar Pistorius. On the final day of the Para World Championships in athletics in Paris, the man from Leverkusen won in 45.81 seconds by more than two seconds.
He was only three hundredths above his new era world record and, as in the last four major events in which he competed over this distance, won gold. The South African Pistorius, who also started at the Olympics in 2012, was convicted of manslaughter in 2014 and has been in prison ever since.
Floors emotional after the win
Floors was extremely emotional after the World Cup victory. “I had to suppress the first tear when I saw my family in the spectator stands. The second when I saw my colleague Irmgard on the winner’s podium,” he said. “In the end, these were two pushing moments.” Previously, Floors’ teammate Irmgard Bensusan had surprisingly successfully defended her title over 200 meters on the last day of the competition.
He felt sorry for his supposedly strongest competitor, Hunter Woodhall from the USA, whose prosthesis broke when he walked in. At the start, he sat crying bitterly on a stool next to the starting grid. “It’s a disaster for him,” Floors said.
Surprising gold for Bensusan
Bensusan, who now works 30 hours a week and finished sixth in the 100 meters, won in 26.82 seconds, 26 hundredths ahead of Dutchman Kimberly Alkemda. Overall, it is the fourth world title for the 32-year-old from Leverkusen, who won five silver medals at the Paralympics. “I never even dreamed of gold,” said the South African, who has a paralyzed leg. “I was hoping for fourth place to get a slot for the Paralympics. My time was good but I thought the others would be faster,” said the happy world champion.
Previously, Katrin Müller-Rottgardt from Wattenscheid had finished second in the class for the visually impaired, but was later disqualified because the band with accompanying runner Noel Fiener was broken before the finish line. A German counter-protest was unsuccessful. This was particularly bitter for the duo, who were knocked out in the 100m by a false start in the semifinals.
