Paralympics day 7: Gold for Gretsch and Kate the Great

Stormy weather forecasts moved the Para Snowboard Banked Slalom competition up to Friday, the 13th, but conditions today were all but spooky as athletes raced to the finish. Kate Delson ruled both runs for gold, with Lisa Bunshoten-Vos taking silver, and Culxtured’s own Brenna Huckaby winning bronze. 

Conditions for today’s race were pristine, making for a fast course. The Banked Slalom event takes an athlete's best time out of two runs down the course, and nearly every competitor improved their time on the second run.  For the Netherlands’ Lisa Bunschoten-Vos, her second run vaulted her from 4th place, to a silver medal finish. Her young daughter, Jane watched from the stands, while her husband, Chris competed in the men’s LL-1 event. “I knew that I made some mistakes in the first run, so I knew there was more in it," Bunschoten-Vos told Olympics.com. "And before that last run I was like, ‘OK, there's nothing to lose and just give everything you have’. And I did. “

Brenna Huckaby, stayed consistent through both runs, never straying from podium position for her first medal of the games. She was the only woman in the field with an above-knee amputation. “I’ll be honest, I thought it was a real long shot for me to stand on that podium,” Huckaby told Olympics.com “I told myself, 'The odds may be stacked against me, but I'm going to freaking give everything that I've got', and that's exactly what I did today.” 

Kate Delson never trailed in today’s event, allowing for a victory lap in her second run. She still managed to improve her time by nearly a second. At the bottom of the course, she was embraced by all her fellow competitors as they celebrated her win. "To do that against an amazing rider such as Lisa Bunschoten, who I've been calling the banked slalom queen for a while, means a lot. She's a vet in the sport, so is Brenna,” Delson told Olympics.com “To share the podium with Brenna, one of my best friends, probably the best snowboarder of all time out here - I always call her that - I'm so proud of her and I can't wait to stand up there with those two girls."

Women’s Para Snowboard - Banked Slalom LL-2

🥇Kate Delson - USA

🥈Lisa Vos-Bunschoten - Netherlands

🥉Brenna Huckaby - USA

No room for error in the Biathlon Sprint Pursuit

In Tesoro, the 7.5km Biathlon Sprint Pursuit was a showcase in keeping cool under pressure. With a short course, and a 75m penalty loop, a missed shot could mean a missed medal. 

Kendall Gretsch shot a perfect 10-for-10 in the sitting category to win her first gold medal of the games. Kim Yunji of Korea finished a close 9.5 seconds behind despite missing two targets on the shooting range, While Germany’s Anya Wicker’s perfect shooting took her to a third-place finish for her third medal of the games. 

In the Standing competition, Canada’s Natalie Wilkie secured her second gold medal of the games. Her perfect shooting propelled her to a 17-second lead ahead of the field. Ukraine’s Iryna Bui finished second for her first medal of the games, and Oleksandra Kononova’s bronze was her third medal.

Czechia’s Carina Edlingerova’s win in the Vision Impaired category was her first gold of the games. China’s Wang Yue won silver, and Simona Bubenickova of Czechia finished third.

After a lengthy delay, it was determined that Leonie Maria Walter of Germany who had initially finished fifth in the race had her time adjusted to share the bronze medal. The reason for the adjustment was due to a technical issue on the shooting ground.

Women’s Para Biathlon Sprint Pursuit 7.5km - Sitting

🥇Kendall Gretsch - USA

🥈Kim Yunji - Republic of Korea

🥉Anya Wicker - Germany

Women’s Para Biathlon Sprint Pursuit 7.5km - Standing

🥇Natalie Wilkie - Canada

🥈Iryna Bui - Ukraine

🥉Oleksandra Kononova - Ukraine

Women’s Para Biathlon Sprint Pursuit 7.5km - Vision Impaired

🥇Carina Edlingerova/Guide: Aleksandr Patava - Czechia

🥈Wang Yue/Guide: Chen Guoming - China

🥉Simona Bubenickova/Guide: David Srutek - Czechia

🥉Leonie Marie Walter/Guide: Christian Krasman - Germany

Up Next

The Sprint Pursuit was the final Biathlon event of the Paralympics. Tomorrow will bring the Para Cross-Country sprint relay, and the Para Alpine Slalom. Coverage starts bright and early at 5 AM Eastern on Peacock.