It puzzles me as to how disabled one has to be before qualifying for the Paralympics?
Take the case of Anna Gimaldi, she's won a gold for long jumping at Rio. Good on her, she's obviously got talent.
But I can't help thinking why wasn't she a contender as an able-bodied athlete for the recent Olympic Games at Rio?
I could understand if she had only one leg or had only one arm or was blind or some other real debilitating problem. But as far as I can tell she's lost only part of her lower arm.
Would that disability really affect long-jumping? I don't think so.
There have been many remarkable athletes who have competed at both the able-bodied Olympics and also the Paralympics.
Take for example the great Eve Rimmer. She had a real disability and was wheelchair-bound. She went on to win gold, silver and bronze medals in a diverse number of sports at the Paralympics.
She competed javelin, discus ,shotput, swimming, archery and even the pentathlon. Then there was Neroli Fairhall, who was selected twice as an Olympian and who won gold at archery at the Brisbane Commonwealth Games. She too was wheelchair-bound but took part in able-bodied games, not Paralympics. The great Sir Murray Halberg, was also disabled, a paralised shoulder/arm as a result of a rugby accident. He went on to win gold in Rome in 1960 - and his list of achievements on the ablebodied stage as an athlete is impressive.
So, not wishing to pour cold water on Gimaldi's gold medal win, I wonder what are the selection criteria for the Paralympics? I may even qualify myself.

P Kelly, Te Puna.