Israeli swimmer Ami Dadaon secured his third medal of the 2024 Paris Paralympics on Tuesday, winning gold in the men’s 200m freestyle S4 disability class.
This victory marks his second gold medal at the Games so far, after he won gold in the 100-meter freestyle this past Friday.
Dadaon, 23, finished the race in 2:49.26, more than three seconds ahead of Roman Zhadanov from Russia, who took silver while competing as a neutral athlete due to the country’s Olympic ban.
Dadaon, who was born with cerebral palsy, holds the world record in this event with a time of 2:44.84, which he set at the Tokyo Paralympics three years ago.
On the podium, a visibly emotional Dadaon sang along to “Hatikvah” as the Israeli anthem played in the packed Paris La Defense Arena.
Speaking to Israel’s Sport5 after the ceremony, he said, “When I’m on the podium, I think about our nation and everything it is going through, and I know that if I can succeed in bringing a few moments of satisfaction, I’ve already done my part.”
This latest gold is Dadaon’s third medal in Paris. In addition to last week’s gold, he also won a silver in the 150m individual medley.
Overall, Israel has won seven medals at the Paris Games so far, including four gold medals.