The Merging of three different classes was the main reason Shari Hj Juma'at (pic) finished eighth during Saturday's men's javelin throw F54/55/56 final at the London Paralympics.

The country's only representative at the Games threw 26.17m, which was well below the World No 1 ranked para-athlete in the F55 class' personal best of 29.83m the ASEAN record.

However, the combination of the three different classes in London meant that Shari always had the odds stacked against him.

"I think it was because the categories were combined so the chances were not good for him," said the contingent's chef de mission Hj Rosmadee Hj Md Daud yesterday.

"We only realised that the classes were combined when we arrived in London. They also decided the medalists by points, not distance.

"We didn't know (so) it's all very unlucky. But now that this has happened ... We can't do anything.

"The only thing we can do is negotiate with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Council so it's different in the future.

"For me, if they didn't combine the classes, Shari (pic) would have got silver - or bronze at least," he added.

Of the five para-athletes in the F55 category, only Poland's Karol Kozun threw a longer distance (27.62m), so Hj Rosmadee was right to say that Shari would have been able to finish on the podium.

The 15 entries in the event were made up of the top-five ranked para-athletes in the F54, F55 and F56 classes.

The top-three names in the F54 class took the podium places; Mexico's World No 2 Luis Albert Zepeda Felix claimed top honours with 28.07m, Russia's World No. 1 Alexey Kuznetsov won silver with 27.87m and Greece's World No 3 Manolis Stefanoudakis finished with bronze on 27.37m.

The IPC defines the F54 class for wheelchair para-athletes with normal upper limb function and no abdominal or lower spinal function while F55 is for those with normal upper limb function and who may have partial to normal trunk function and no leg function.

The F56 class, meanwhile, is for those with normal upper limb and trunk function and some leg function.

Hj Rosmadee pointed out that the Asian Para Games and ASEAN Para Games separate the classes, making for an even playing field.

Shari won silver in the F55 event during the 2010 Asian Para Games in Guangzhou, China, and won gold during last year's Arafura Games in Darwin, Australia.

The 45-year-old Shari, who has been representing the Sultanate since 1991, also won gold during last year's ASEAN Para Games in Solo, Indonesia, after a throw of 26.22m.

However the three classes were bunched into one during the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships in Christchurch, New Zealand a qualifying event for the London Paralympics.

Courtesy from Brunei Times