Paralympic swimmer Iyad Shalabi took home a second gold medal in the Tokyo Games on Thursday, winning the men's 50-meter backstroke event.

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The 34-year-old swimmer picked up first place with a time of 1:11.79.

Ukraine's Anton Kol won the silver medal and Italy's Francesco Bettella claimed the bronze.

Shalabi, who was born deaf and mute and was left a paraplegic after an accident he suffered when he was 13, made history last week when he won the 100m backstroke final in the S1 category at the Tokyo Paralympics. Not only did he win Israel's first gold medal in the games, he became the first Arab Israeli to medal for Israel.

Shortly after Shalabi won the top prize, Israeli swimmer Ami Dadaon got the second gold of the day for the national team after winning the freestyle event for 50m. This is his second gold in the Tokyo games.

Thursday's win brings Israel's tally of Paralympic medals to nine.

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Israeli swimmer Ami Omer Dadaon, who won a silver medal in the men's 150-meter individual medley on Sunday, took home the gold medal in the men's 200m freestyle event.

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Dadaon clinched the win with a time of 2:44.84. Takayuki Suzuki of Japan won the silver, while Russian Paralympic Roman Sergeyevich Zhdanov took home the bronze.

"It's so exciting to see Ami realize his dream with an inspiring performance in the Paralympic Games. We are so proud of you," Culture and Sports Minister Hili Tropper tweeted.

Dadaon, 20, born with cerebral palsy, took the gold at the 2018 European Championships in Ireland in the 100-meter freestyle and 150-meter medley and also won the silver medal in the 50M breaststroke and 200M freestyle.

Moments before, two-time gold medal winner swimmer Mark Malyar won his third Paralympics medal on Monday, taking the bronze in the men's 100m backstroke event, making a time of 1:10.28.

Ukraine's Trusov Andrii won the gold while the silver medal was claimed by Argentina's Carlomagno Pipo.

This puts Israel's medal tally at the Tokyo Games at seven.

Sunday saw Malyar claim the top spot at the 400-meter freestyle event. On Saturday, he took home his first Olympic medal, winning the gold at the men's 200-meter individual medley.

Both wins also saw the 21-year-old shatter world records, the latter being one he himself had set.

"Mark is breaking every record, winning another medal in the Paralympic Games. This is a stellar example of shattering all limits," Tropper tweeted.

The 2020 Games are Malyar's first Paralympics. He is competing in Tokyo alongside his twin brother Ariel. Both were born with cerebral palsy and started swimming as young boys as part of their physical therapy regiment.

At the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships – moved from Malaysia to Britain after the former refused to allow Israeli athletes onto its soil – Malyar also won the gold and the silver medals and set a world record.

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Paralympic swimmer Mark Malyar snagged his second gold medal in the Tokyo Games on Sunday, winning the 400-meter freestyle event.

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Malyar, 21, set a time of 4:31.06 in the swim, breaking a world record he himself set.

Andrii Trusov of Ukraine won the silver medal, while Evan Austin from the US claimed the bronze.

This is Israel's fifth medal in the 2020 Paralympics. The Jewish state has so far scored three gold medals and two silver ones.

These are Malyar's first Paralympics Games. He is competing in Tokyo alongside his twin brother Ariel. Both were born with cerebral palsy and started swimming at age 5 for physical therapy.

At the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships – moved from Malaysia to Britain after the former refused to allow Israeli athletes onto its soil – Malyar also won the gold and the silver medals and set a world record.

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Israeli Paralympians won two silver medals in Tokyo over the weekend, bringing the country's medal tally so far to four.

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Rower Moran Samuel won the silver medal in the women's 2,000-meter single sculls on Sunday. She took home the Paralympic bronze in the 2016 Rio Games and another bronze at the 2019 World Rowing Championships in Austria.

Samuel, 39, is a former member of Israel's national basketball team. In 2006, she suffered a spinal stroke which left her paralyzed in her lower body.

Samuel completed Sunday's sail in 11:18.39, behind Norway's Birgit Skarstein who won the gold, and besting France's Nathalie Benoit, who took the bronze.

President Isaac Herzog congratulated Samuel, calling her "superwoman" and adding that she "copes so impressively with all the challenges of life. We are proud of you, Moran!" he tweeted.

On Saturday, paralympic swimmer Ami Omer Dadaon, who has cerebral palsy, won a silver medal in the men's 150-meter individual medley.

Russian Paralympian Roman Zhdanov won the gold and Japan's Takayuki Suzuki took home the bronze in the event.

In 2018, Dadaon, 20, took the gold at the European Championships in Ireland in the 100-meter freestyle and 150-meter medley and also won the silver medal in the 50M breaststroke and 200M freestyle.

Lauding the achievement on Twitter, Herzog wrote, "Ami Dadon was born with cerebral palsy. When asked what word defines him he said - faith. Today he won a silver medal in the 150-meter individual medley at the Paralympic Games.

"Dear Ami, there is no doubt your faith won. Keep breaking records - we all believe in you!"

Friday saw Israeli paralympic swimmer Mark Malyar win a gold medal and break a world record. Malyar smashed another world record on Sunday in the men's 400-meter freestyle round and advanced to the finals.

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Israel scored its second Paralympic gold medal in the Tokyo Games on Friday when swimmer Mark Malyar won top honors while also breaking a world record.

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Malyar, 21, won the men's 200-meter individual medley with a time of 2:29.01. Andrii Trusov of Ukraine won the silver and the bronze was claimed by Colombia's Carlos Serrano Zarate.

This was Israel's second gold medal for Israel in Paralympic swimming in three days, a feat last marked in 2004.

On Wednesday, Iyad Shalabi, who won the 100-meter backstroke, made history when he became the first Arab Israel to medal in either the Paralympics or the Olympics.

Friday marked Malyar's first Paralympic medal. He is competing in Tokyo alongside his twin brother Ariel. Both were born with cerebral palsy and started swimming at age 5 for physical therapy.

At the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships – moved from Malaysia to Britain after the former refused to allow Israeli athletes onto its soil – Malyar also won the gold and the silver medals and set a world record.

President Isaac Herzog phoned Malyar to congratulate him on the win.

"Mark, this is so exciting. You are unstoppable," Herzog said, according to a statement from his office. "Both a gold medal and a Made-in-Israel world record! I wish you, your brother, and your special coach Yaakov Beininson more medals over the course of the games. Well done!."

Culture and Sports Minister Chili Tropper praised Malyar's "amazing world record."

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Israeli Paralympic swimmer Iyad Shalabi won the gold medal for the 100-meter backstroke final in the S1 category at the Tokyo Paralympics on Wednesday, securing the first gold for Israel in this Paralympics and also becoming the first Arab Israeli to medal for Israel.

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Shalabi was born deaf and mute and was left a paraplegic after an accident he suffered when he was 13.

On Wednesday, he swam the 100 meters in 2:28.04.

Culture and Sports Minister Chili Tropper congratulated the swimmer for his "enormous success" in a Facebook post.

"Congratulations to our Israeli swimmer Iyad Shalabit, who won Israel's first gold medal at the Paralympic Games. Iyad is an inspiring person, whose life is full of victories. And today was another shining one… We're proud of you, Iyad!" Tropper wrote.

Shalabi could be awarded with a cash prize of 500,000 shekels ($155,000), like Israel's other Olympic medalists.

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Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka and the sports world, meet Pascale Bercovitch, Shraga Weinberg, Moran Samuel and Doron Shaziri. Olympians Biles and Osaka have helped raise awareness about mental health in sports. And the four elite Israel athletes, along with 27 other Israeli Paralympians, are doing their part to show the world the extraordinary capabilities of people with physical disabilities.

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The Israeli Paralympics team is headed to Tokyo to compete in nine sports in the delayed 2020 Summer Paralympics from Aug. 24 to Sept. 5.

Bercovitch will compete in paracanoeing, Weinberg in wheelchair tennis (quad singles and doubles), Samuel in rowing (women's single sculls) and Shaziri in 50-meter men's rifle (shooting). The Israeli delegation is scheduled to compete in athletics, bocce, goalball, kayaking, powerlifting, rowing, shooting, swimming, table tennis and wheelchair tennis. They will join 4,400 athletes from around the world set to compete in 539 events in 22 sports.

Paralympic athletes are assessed and then placed into competition categories, called sport classes, according to what extent their impairment affects their performance. According to the Olympics official website, "The Paralympic Movement offers sport opportunities for athletes with physical, vision and/or intellectual impairments that have at least one of the following 10 eligible impairments: impaired muscle power, impaired passive range of movement, limb deficiency, leg length difference, short stature, muscle tension, uncoordinated movement, involuntary movements, vision impairment or intellectual impairment."

Yehoshua Dekel, president of Israel Paralympic Committee, is excited about the Israel team, which will set off for Tokyo in shifts, with each group arriving close to their days of competition. While he hopes the athletes will "bring home many medals," he's pleased that each athlete serves as a dugma – a role model – for Israeli children with and without disabilities.

"Our athletes are heroes," reports Dekel, noting that they regularly make appearances at Israeli schools to share stories of their disabilities and their journeys to their sports accomplishments. "They are an example of what is possible."

Dekel is also pleased that the Israeli government has become increasingly supportive of Israeli Paralympic athletes in the past five years. He notes that additional support also comes from the private sector.

Yuval Wagner, the founder and chairperson of Access Israel, who is also a person with a disability, will be cheering the Israeli athletes from his home in Israel. "Access Israel is excited about the Israeli Paralympic delegation for being role models for all of us aiming for excellence and on the journey for the medal, promoting awareness for inclusion and accessibility."

Jamie Lassner, executive director of Friends of Access Israel (FAISR), is particularly excited to watch two Israeli rowers compete. Pascale Bercovitch, who leaves for Tokyo on Aug. 25, reports, "I am so happy the Paralympics are happening. I am genuinely so happy to be part of it!"

She notes the difficult years of training, waiting, anticipating and hardships. "Preparation was really complicated because of the coronavirus pandemic," says Bercovitch, who at times trained on a kayak machine in the garden behind her apartment, and at times was able to train in the Yarkon River once athletes were given special permission despite multiple lockdowns.

Bercovitch, 54, is one of the oldest Paralympians in this year's competition. She has competed in previous Paralympics, including in 2012, where she placed sixth in a handcycling. In 2016, she competed in paracanoe.

She is also a writer, filmmaker and motivational speaker, speaking candidly about her experience losing two legs in a train accident as a teenager, making aliyah alone from France and serving in the IDF, and training and competing as an elite athlete.

FAISR's Lassner adds fondly, "Pascale had me at the first bonjour when we met on the Tel Aviv promenade in the summer of 2019. She is a mentor, a motivator and my only friend headed to a fifth Olympics in a row. Her warmth, smile and joie de vivre are infectious."

Lassner is similarly impressed with Paralympian Moran Samuel, who has also competed in more than one sport. "What amazes me is that she went from being a leader on an Israeli basketball squad – a team sport – to the solitude of rowing. She is a true athlete with an incredibly focused heart."

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The Paralympics traditionally take place two weeks after the Olympics end and are held in the same city and venues. Many around the world have become familiar with the competition through the 2020 Netflix film, "Rising Phoenix," which tells the story of the Paralympics. In the show's words: "Elite athletes and insiders reflect on the Paralympic Games and examine how they impact a global understanding of disability, diversity and excellence."

Following on the anticipated success of the upcoming Tokyo Summer Olympics, Israel hopes to also send a delegation of participants to the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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They'll always have Paris.

That thought, full of promise, has been a lifebuoy for athletes to cling to as they coped, as best they could, with thickets of restrictions at the pandemic-hit Tokyo Games that severely crimped their Olympic experience – and left some hungry for more.

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Barred from bringing family and friends with them to Japan, playing in empty arenas and not allowed to sightsee in Tokyo, some athletes found themselves daydreaming about the French capital's Olympic rendezvous in 2024. If the coronavirus is tamed by then, the Paris Games could quickly become the party games. Already, there is palpable pent-up eagerness among athletes to make up for Tokyo and its disappointments.

"When Paris happens, I'll be like, 'OK, wow, like this is a whole new energy. This is it,'" said U.S. skateboarder Mariah Duran. "Maybe I had to have the appetizer before the whole meal."

For now, Paris officials say they're betting that the pandemic will be over when their turn comes. "Normally, we'll be able to party," the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, said Sunday on French TV when Tokyo passed the baton.

But if the coronavirus is still ruining the best-laid plans, then Tokyo has served up a model of how to hold an Olympics even as infections are surging. It pared the games down to their most essential ingredient: competition. No spectators. No city-wide partying. Very little mingling between Olympians and their hosts. Paris officials were watching closely and say that while they hope for the best, they'll also plan for the worst.

Toughest for many Tokyo Olympians was not being accompanied to Japan by loved ones who had no choice but to watch them compete on TV. American surfer Carissa Moore said it was "a huge challenge" being separated from her husband and his "strong constant voice."

Moore ultimately found her footing to win gold in surfing's debut as an Olympic sport. As painful as separation was, Tokyo was also a learning experience for the Hawaiian. "I'm very proud of myself, to be here and stand on my own two feet," she said.

Traveling without her parents for the first time at age 17, U.S. skateboarder Brighton Zeuner compensated by staying closely connected even during her competition, video-calling her father from the Olympic skate bowl "between every single run I did."

To limit infection risks, organizers also asked athletes to arrive in Tokyo no earlier than five days before competing and leave within 48 hours of being done – a rapid turnaround that further truncated the Olympic experience.

Belgian skateboarder Axel Cruysberghs, who competed in week one, and his skateboarding wife Lizzie Armanto, who competed in week two, passed each other like ships in the night. As she took off for Tokyo, his flight back to their home was 20 minutes from landing.

"It worked out for our puppy," she joked. But it wasn't the fairy-tale Olympics they'd planned before the pandemic.

"We'd hoped to like be here for a month together and, you know, I could see his event and he could stay for mine," Armanto said. "But because of COVID and everything ... "

Armanto came away from Tokyo having not made up her mind about whether she wants to go again in Paris. In an Instagram livestream from the Olympic residential compound where athletes were largely confined when not training or competing, she was wrestling with cabin fever, complaining of rooms that "feel a little prison-like" and wishing that organizers hadn't barred athletes from going to watch sports other than their own in their downtime.

"I've circled the perimeter quite a few times because what else do you do here?" Armanto asked.

Not being able to pass the time at sports venues was a common complaint.

"That's something I would have liked to have experienced as an Olympian, to go watch my other teammates, other than wrestlers, compete," said Elias Kuosmanen of Finland, who wrestled in the Greco-Roman heavyweight class.

At the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Canadian volleyball player Nicholas Hoag took in gymnastics and track and field on off days, went out for drinks with teammates and otherwise absorbed the Olympic experience. But on days with no matches in Tokyo, "I was watching TV pretty much all day, watching all the sports."

Another Canadian volleyballer, Ryan Sclater, said the pandemic games were "a real mix of amazing things and weird things" and somewhat blunted by social distancing and mask-wearing. Athletes were asked not to mingle outside their teams and avoid "unnecessary" hugs, high-fives and handshakes – guidance they frequently ignored in the heat and joy of competition.

"We are not quite connecting in the same way that we normally could," Sclater said. "It's funny being so close to all these amazing people who are here to compete but then not quite getting to know them in the same way as you might at a different Olympics."

But because the pandemic delayed Tokyo by a year, Paris is now only a three-year waitinstead of the usual four.

"That is exciting, yes, to think about being able to do this again," Sclater said. "To see even more of the beauty and coolness of people coming together and being able to really connect to the Olympics."

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Russian Olympic rhythmic gymnast Dina Averina on Monday urged people to leave Israel's gold medalist Linoy Ashram alone after the Israeli's win on Saturday in the Tokyo Olympics drew controversy on social media.

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"I, like Linoy Ashram, am being bullied on social media," she said in an interview with Championat, a Russian digital sports publisher.

The Russian Olympic Committee had unsuccessfully challenged the scoring of the gymnastics final which saw Ashram edge out three-time world champion Dina Averina ending two decades of Russian hegemony in rhythmic gymnastics.

Averina, a popular favorite to win the competition, instead won silver.

"Yes, not all people support me," she said, adding: "we are not guilty of anything – this is a matter of the judges. I feel sorry for Linoy – she did nothing wrong. Don't harass her."

Averina earlier stated she did not feel it was fair that she got a lower score in rhythmic gymnastics after Ashram dropped her apparatus during her routine.

"I can't say that it was very fair," said Averina. "I can't spot any obvious mistake that I did. I was pretty consistent and clean compared to Linoy who lost the apparatus."

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Ashram's victory on Saturday is the first time since the 1996 Atlanta games that a non-Russian gymnast won a medal in the all-around event.

In addition, it is the first gold medal won by an Israeli woman and marks the first time Israel won more than one gold medal in a single Olympics.

i24NEWS contributed to this report.

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Tears, medals, Ska music, Japanese dancing and planes flying – Sunday's Tokyo Olympics closing ceremony had it all.

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It began with the raising of the Japanese flag above a nearly empty stadium as the Olympic flame burned inside the white cauldron. According to tradition, marathon runners were presented with their medals, followed by Japanese dances and opera singer Tomotoka Okamoto singing the International Olympic Committee anthem.

IOC President Thomas Bach then declared the games officially over, as the French flag was hoisted above the arena to mark the handover of the Olympics to Paris, which will host the competition in 2024. The last time France hosted the games was in 1924, almost 100 years ago.

The handover also included a flyover above the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Thousands of people, including medalists who have returned from Tokyo, gathered near the site to watch.

French President Emmanuel Macron said, standing on the top floor of the tower, that the slogan of the 2024 Olympics would be "higher, faster, stronger," and added: "Together." His speech was followed by a concert performed by French artist Woodkid at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.

Earlier in the day, the IOC voted to give itself more power to remove sports from the Olympic program. The decision comes after prolonged issues with sports leadership.

The IOC can now remove a sport if its governing body does not comply with a decision made by the Olympic body's executive board or if it "acts in a manner likely to tarnish the reputation of the Olympic movement."

Weightlifting could lose its place at the 2024 Paris Olympics because of a series of doping scandals and governance issues. The International Weightlifting Federation was led for two decades until last year by longtime IOC member Tamas Ajan.

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