TWENTY-FIVE-YEAR-OLD Jonathan Lowe seized Jamaica’s first gold medal at the 13th Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens, Greece when he swam 2 minutes 57.17 seconds in the M10 100m freestyle at the Olympic Stadium Aquatics Arena yesterday.

Monique Brown and Romaine Austin grabbed silver medals in the roller skating F11 and M11 300m, respectively, at the Peace and Friendship Stadium Hall.

Lowe out-swam China’s Yingbei Huang, 3:10.24, and Philippine’s Raymond Macasaet, 3:19.20. It was a surprise to the Jamaican, who clocked 3:13.30, the slowest in the preliminary round two days earlier.

Luthrenia Erskine and Rachel Charles placed fourth and eighth respectively in their respective divisional 50m freestyle finals.

Erskine, 17, clocked 38.82 seconds after Korean Woo Seon Park, who won in 33.14 seconds while Charles, aged 13, timed 50.00 seconds as Suriname’s Hessa Marian Vianen won in a time of 41.29 seconds.

In roller skating, Brown, 18, clocked 45.10 seconds for the silver, beaten by Russian 13-year-old Daria Chebanu, who posted 43.76 seconds for gold. Hungary’s Nikoletta Olah took the bronze in a time of 47.02 seconds.

Austin, 14, registered 42.10 seconds for his runner-up spot, as China’s Zihao Zeng triumphed with 38.36 seconds. Poland’s Mariusz Strzyzewski got the bronze in a time of 42.82 seconds.

In football, at the Apillion Panionios Training Center, Sheldon Johnson scored for Jamaica to clip Denmark 1-0. In other significant results, Bharat (India) beat Ireland 5-1, Turkey beat Australia 3-0, Greece II beat Spain 7-1, and Cote D’Ivoire beat Austria 10-1.

Jamaica’s footballers, guided by head coach Lennox Christie and spearheaded by players such as Chanique McBean, Desmond Lynch, Errol Knibbs, Johnson, Michael Grant, and Orel Ewen, will play Russia today.

In F19 badminton singles, Shannalee Miller defeated United Arab Emirates’ Zakeya Ahmed Almazam 21-19, 21-14.

More than 7,500 athletes from 185 countries are taking part in 22 events at the World Summer Games.