Ernie Gawilan advances to 400m freestyle S7 final in Paris Paralympics

Metro Manila, Philippines — Filipino para swimmer Ernie Gawilan secured a spot in the final of the men's 400m freestyle S7 after topping Heat 2 on Monday in the Paris 2024 Paralympics.

The 33-year-old, born without legs and with an underdeveloped left limb, clocked in an official time of 5:00.13.

His time was the third fastest overall in all the heats.

Andrii Trusov of Ukraine came in second (5:16.03), while Argentina's Iñaki Basiloff finished in third (5:17.33).

Gawilan, who is eyeing his first Paralympic medal, captured the men’s 400m freestyle S7 gold at the 2022 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China.

The men's 400m freestyle S7 final is on Sept. 2 at 11:30 p.m. (Philippine time).