Belgian Peter Genyn (44) became Paralympic champion in the 100 meters in the T51 class yesterday. The 44-year-old wheelchair sprinter did just that with a sabotaged wheeler. His compatriot Roger Habsch (3rd) also spoke of sabotage.
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,,I arrived here in the stadium 45 minutes before I had to start warming up. And then I discovered that my wheeler had three flat tires and a broken steering wheel”, Genyn returns to his story. ,,The entire framework has started, some Dutch people and the technical service of the stadium have come to help. We have collected parts from other seats.”
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With quite a bit of duct tape, it came just in time for Genyn. ,,The chair was not quite perfect, but it was good. It’s good that everyone around me kept calm, because I collapsed the moment I saw my chair. It was horrible. I’ve never experienced this. I’ve never even heard of it, not even in the able-bodied sport. This is very low. Unseen actually.”
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Strange things are happening in the Paralympic village. The day before yesterday the axis of my chair was also hit. It has been tampered with. I’m sure of it. It’s incomprehensible.
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“I thought for a long time that I wouldn’t be able to race. I thought: ‘If I can still take gold, I am really the man’. I really have no idea who did this. You really have to be an asshole to do this. This incident actually made me stronger. I’m going to enjoy this medal now. It is only three years until the Paralympic Games in Paris. I definitely want to be there.”
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The Belgian Paralympic Committee filed a complaint after the match. Genyn himself does not want to point the finger at anyone, because according to the Paralympian it is quite easy for accredited persons to get to the equipment of the athletes. “I fear we will never find out who the perpetrator is, because there are no CCTV images. The complaint is symbolic.”
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Habsch also sabotaged
Genyn’s sabotaged wheeler does not seem to be an isolated case, compatriot Roger Habsch (42) who was good for bronze in the 100m also spoke about ill will in the Paralympic village after his race. “Weird things are happening. I’ve had a flat tire here too, with a puncture all the way from left to right. That was done intentionally.”
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,,And the day before yesterday, the axis of my chair was also hit. It has been tampered with. I’m sure of it. It’s incomprehensible. It’s the first time that happens to me. It’s sad that I have to talk about this after a race at the Paralympic Games. But that’s the way it is. Apparently not everyone has the same values and norms. We all practice the same sport.”
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