Para athletics Duo off to Paris.

PNG representative Regina Edwards and SP award winning para-athlete Dorna Longbut have left Port Moresby on Monday 4th July to compete in the World Para-athletics Championships in Paris from July 8th -17th 2023.

Dorna Longbut took her first bow at the mini-Pacific games last year at Saipen, Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas where she won two medals. She won gold in the 100m T46 Ambulant and bronze in the women's shot put F46 Ambulant event.

Regina Edward also won a silver medal in the Women’s Ambulant Javelin throw during the mini-game.

For this year’s competition, Dorna is qualified for javelin while Regina will participate in discus throw.

Furthermore, during CPL's award presentation to Dorna, Para-athletes coach Paul Bannister said the duo meet the standard requirement that allows them to compete internationally.

“This is not just them coming along to represent the country, this is them actually getting the minimum entry standard (MES) required for all world entrances", said Coach Paul Bannister.

Moreover, the World Championships will take place at the Charlety Stadium. It will be the third competition edition to be held in France following Lille/Villeneuve d'Ascq 2002 and Lyon 2013.

The Championships programme features 171 medal events (93 in the men’s category, 77 in the women’s category and 1 in the mixed category).

Interestingly, Paris 2023 will be the first opportunity for athletes to achieve direct qualification slots for their National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) for the Paris 2024 Paralympics.

Photo credit: High Performance Sport PNG