So impressive: Hong Kong’s Paralympic champion So Wai-wai finishes 10km race in 1 hour 9 minutes
34-year-old athlete who won 12 medals in glittering career before retiring bows out in style in city event
Paralympic champion So Wa-wai finished his 10-kilometre marathon in one hour and nine minutes on Sunday.
So, 34, who has cerebral palsy, announced his retirement as an athlete earlier this month after a 21-year career that saw him garner 12 Paralympic medals, including six gold, three silver and three bronze.
He said he was satisfied with his performance yesterday, although it was a difficult run with the rain and the need to run uphill towards the end of the race.
“It was very difficult but I really enjoyed the race,” said So, who participated in the marathon to raise money for this year’s Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. “If you have a good mood, then nothing will be a problem.”
So said that although he had retired, he kept training and started to prepare for the marathon two months ago.
Nicknamed “magic kid”, So, who has attended five Paralympics, won his first gold medal at the age of 15 when his team came first in the 4x100m relay at the 1996 games in Atlanta, United States.
