Theodor Subba will start what, he hopes, will be a journey to a gold medal in judo when he makes his debut as the first Jamaican to take part in the sport at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, when he takes on Iran’s Kheirollahzadeh Mohammadreza at Nippon Budokan in the men’s +100kg event.

Subba, who was the joint flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony, is relatively new to the sport, only starting judo after the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, but is confident he will make a good start against an opponent with more experience.

Mohammadreza, who is nicknamed the “The Tiger of Mazandaran”, won the Para World Championships in Portugal in 2018 and was also second at the Asian Para Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, the same year.

Meanwhile Sylvia Grant, who is competing in her eighth Paralympic Games, finished 10 in the women’s discus throw F57 (for people who compete in field events from a seated position) on Friday (Jamaican time) with a best throw of 23.12m.

She was consistent in her series with all her throws over the 22.00m mark with the best effort coming on the fourth of her six throws.

Mokhigul Khamdamova of Uzbekistan won the gold medal with a throw of 31.46m, Nassima Saifi of Algeria took the silver medal with 30.81m, while Julyana Cristina daSilva of Brazil won the bronze with 30.49m.

— Paul Reid