No stopping Netherlands and USA who retain crowns at Paralympic Games Paris 2024
PARIS (France) – There was a strong sense of déjà vu in the French capital as both Netherlands and USA conquered the women's and men's wheelchair basketball competitions to continue their respective Olympic gold rushes.
The wheelchair basketball competitions at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games took place over 11 days, from August 29 to September 8, with eight national teams competing in each tournament. Fans turned out in impressive numbers, with 31 games out of 48 sold out and an impressive 94.8% of tickets sold overall.
Additionally, several key figures attended the competition, including the President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Queen Letizia of Spain, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and LA 2028 Chair Casey Wasserman, further elevating the prestige of the tournaments.
Netherlands secured back-to-back Paralympic titles on the last day of the Paris 2024 Games after impressing a captivated crowd inside Bercy Arena with a stellar 63-49 success against USA.
The powerful one-two punch of Bo Kramer with 23 points and Mariska Beijer with 22 points proved to be the difference-maker – along with a third-quarter burst that put daylight between the teams.
As well as podium success at Tokyo 2020, the Dutch team also took to the court as favorites having won the last two World Championships.
But they were forced to work seriously hard to get the job done after trailing by seven points during the early exchanges. They also had to deal with Rose Hollermann, who was inspirational in defeat with 17 points for USA.
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Earlier in the day, China landed the bronze medal after they eased past Canada 65-43, prospering from an outstanding contribution of 23 points from Zhang Tonglei.
In the men's competition, it was an Olympic three-peat for USA as they followed up the glory of taking gold in Rio and Tokyo by adding Paris to the list.
The USA came out on top 73-69 against Great Britain in a classic Final matchup that wowed the fans due to its energetic and end-to-end nature – eventually culminating in a nail-biting conclusion.
Appearing in their first title game for almost three decades, Great Britain's eagerness to impress perhaps cost them as they suffered early foul trouble and that hampered them throughout a tight contest.
USA's Steve Serio led his team brilliantly with 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists, while Jake Williams was equally impressive as he contributed 26 points, 8 assists, and 3 rebounds.
The loss was tough for Great Britain and Philip Pratt. The former amassed 21 points and 16 rebounds, while the latter netted 17 points and handed out a spectacular 16 assists.
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The Final followed a similarly compelling bronze medal match, which witnessed Germany claim a 75-62 comeback win against Canada.
Behind for three quarters of the contest, they made their run in the last period and propelled by a jaw-dropping 36 points from Thomas Boehme, they took a first medal since 1992. The loss was tough on Patrick Anderson who lit it up for Canada with 31 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists.
For more information on the Paralympic Games Paris 2024 tournaments and the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation, click here.
FIBA
