Israeli swimmer dedicates olympic medal to Israel’s soldiers: “We’re able to live, thanks to them"

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Mark Malyar, a 24-year-old two-time Paralympic champion, dedicated his recently won bronze medal in the S8-disability men's 100m backstroke to the soldiers of Israel Defense Forces.

In an interview with Israel's Sport5 broadcaster, Malyar stated: "I want to thank the soldiers and everyone who protects us. Because of them, we can train and reach this point; we are able to live, thanks to them."

Malyar took his fourth walk to the Paralympic podium on Saturday, having won three swimming medals in Japan three years ago. He expressed great delight in his accomplishment in Paris saying: “There’s an incredible crowd here, unlike Tokyo, where there were no spectators. It feels great to win a medal here. Hearing the crowd cheer for me made me realize the difference between Paris and Tokyo, which felt like just another competition. I know my starts aren’t strong, so my plan was to finish strong. I’m glad it worked."

The S8 disability class categorizes the level of disability for swimmers, with level 1 indicating the most severe impairment and level 10 the least. Swimmers in class S8 may have an amputation or conditions like cerebral palsy. Both Mark Malyar and his twin brother, Ariel, have cerebral palsy. Mark experiences partial paralysis on the left side of his body.

The twin brothers were diagnosed with the condition at birth and began swimming when they were five years old as part of their physical therapy.

Both excelled in the sport and dedicated themselves to training and competing throughout their youth.

Mark has since become a world-renowned Paralympic athlete, having won gold twice, in addition to a bronze medal in the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020.

He set world records in Japan with times of 2:29.01 minutes in the 200-meter individual medley and 4:31.06 minutes in the 400-meter freestyle. Ariel is also competing in the Paralympics this year.

“It felt great to see the flag go up,” Malyar said shortly after receiving his award, “I feel amazing.”

Israeli athletes have maintained their success in the Paralympics as in the Olympic Games, with Asaf Yasur securing a gold medal in taekwondo and Ami Dadaon capturing another gold in the 100-meter freestyle.