TOKYO, August 29. /TASS/. Russian athlete Denis Gnezdilov won the Paralympic shot put competition among athletes below 130 cm tall, setting a new world record.

In the final competition, the 34-year-old Russian athlete showed the result of 11.02 meters in his first attempt and surpassed the previous world record held by the Portuguese athlete Miguel Monteiro by one centimeter.

As of today, the Russian national team of athletes in Tokyo - participating as Team RPC (the Russian Paralympic Committee) due to international sanctions against Russian sports - boasts 14 gold, seven silver, and 20 bronze medals.

The 2020 Summer Paralympic Games in Japan’s Tokyo are being held between August 24 and September 5, 2021. In March 2020, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced their decision to postpone the 2020 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Japan for one year due to the continuous COVID-19 spread.

Team RPC at 2020 Summer Paralympics in Japan

The team of national athletes from Russia at the 2020 Summer Paralympic Games in Japan includes 242 athletes, while the overall number of the RPC delegation in Tokyo stands at 432 people. The selected Paralympians from Russia are fighting for medals in 19 out of the 22 sports competitions, on the program of the quadrennial event.

Russian athletes are competing in the 2020 Summer Paralympic Games in Tokyo under the flag and logo of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) instead of the Russian national flag and state emblem.

The national anthem of Russia is also under sanctions at the Paralympics in Japan. The First Piano Concerto by Pyotr Tchaikovsky was selected to be played at awarding ceremonies for Russian Paralympians in Tokyo.