The Republic of Moldova will be represented by five athletes at the Paris Paralympic Games of August 28 - September 8. The national team will compete in three sports events – para judo, para powerlifting and para athletics, IPN reports.

The Ministry of Education and Research said that, for the first time, three members of the national para judo team of Moldova have qualified to contend at the Paralympic Games. Two of them, Oleg Crețul and Ion Basoc, take the second spot in the world rankings, in the up to 90 kg and 90+ weight categories, which gives the national team real chances to win.

Last year, Crețul and Basoc managed to become European champions, both winning bronze at the World Championships and gold medals at the Tokyo Grand Prix, which is considered the most prestigious para judo tournament in the world.

Ina Cernei (up to 57 kg category) will make her debut at the Paris Paralympics. She is the first judoka to represent Moldova at this level.

Larisa Marinenkova, a para powerlifting athlete, a veteran of the Moldovan Paralympic movement, will compete in the Paralympic Games for the fifth time. She will also be the national team’s flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the Games.

Gheorghe Spînu, the rising star of Moldovan para athletics, will compete in the shot put in the F35 category. In May, the athlete ranked seventh at the World Para Athletics Championships.