Two weeks after the Olympics ended, the Paralympic Games got off to an incredible start for the Israeli delegation to Tokyo. Israeli Arab swimmer Iyad Shalabi won gold in the men’s 100-meter backstroke in the S1 category (tetraplegia or severe coordination problems with all four limbs) on the very first day of the games. Shalabi beat silver medalist Anton Kol of Ukraine by just 0.25 seconds.
Shalabi, who hails from the Arab town of Shfaram, was born deaf. Then, at the age of 13, his lower body was paralyzed in an accident. His win was not only the first medal for Israel in the current games, but also the first gold medal in swimming for Israel since the Athens Games in 2004, when Keren Leibovitch also won gold on the 100-meter backstroke. The last Israeli to win gold at the Paralympics in any other sport was Noam Gershoni, who won in tennis in London in 2012.
As of the writing of these lines, Israel has won four medals at the Tokyo Paralympic Games. In addition to Shalabi, other medalists include Mark Malyar, Ami Dadaon, and Moran Samuel. Nevertheless, everyone agrees that Shalabi’s win was historic. He was the first Arab to win a personal medal in the Olympics or Paralympics as part of the Israeli team.
The Tokyo Games mark Shalabi’s fourth appearance at Paralympic competitions, but it is the first time he made it to the podium by coming in first. In Beijing 2008 and London 2012, he may not have made it all the way, but was as close as possible, coming in fourth. People were ecstatic in his hometown of Shfaram about the medal, but also in the Arab society and the entire country. His name came up just about everywhere in the Israeli media, and he was congratulated by politicians from across the political spectrum.
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