Qatar- Australia's Holt breaks world record at IPC meet


(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Walid Ktila of Tunisia competes in the men’s 400m T34.

Doha: The incredible drama of the Doha 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships has continued on day three as a 14 year-old Australian broke the Women’s 200m T35 world-record.

The sprinters dominated the evening’s action as crowd favourites Marlou van Rhijn of The Netherlands Jason Smyth of Ireland and Walid Ktila of Tunisia retained their World Championship titles.

It was a battle of the teenagers in the Women’s 200m T35 as 14-year-old Isis Holt clocked 28.57s to beat 15-year-old Maria Lyle of Great Britain into second place.

Maria Lyle had broken the 200m T35 world-record earlier this year setting up a thrilling final between the pair who had never met in competition - Isis Holt only took up the sport a year ago and had never left her home country.

Speaking after her world-record run Isis Holt said: “I was quite nervous before the race this is my first time overseas ever so to come here and win and break the world record is so amazing for me on all levels.”

In the Women’s 200m T44 ‘Blade Babe’ Marlou van Rhijn beat rival Marie-Amelie le Fur to continue her dominance in the sprint events.

The Paralympic World and European Champion and world-record holder was pushed all the way by le Fur but produced a scintillating finish to retain her status as the fasted female leg amputee sprinter.

Speaking after her victory van Rhijn said: “It was a very good race I found the track very quick and I am very happy to be here and to maintain my title. The facilities are fantastic which helps a lot.”

Walid Ktila of Tunisia claimed the first of four possible titles at this year’s World Championships when he won the 400m T34 final. Ktila has dominated the T34 sprint events for the last few years having won two Paralympic titles at London 2012 and four World Championship titles at Lyon 2013. He will be looking to match this World Championship feat in Doha when he competes in the 100m 200m and 800m T34 events.

Speaking after winning gold Ktila said: “My victory was expected as I have worked extremely hard leading up to this championship. I wanted to break the world record but I am satisfied with this result.”

In the Men’s 100m T13 Jason Smyth the fastest para-athlete of all time who is dubbed the Usain Bolt of the Paralympic Games produced a dominating victory to win in 10.62 seconds.

Meanwhile Omara Durand of Cuba broke her second world-record of the World Championships in the Women’s 200m T12 heat with a time of 23.38s after having broken the 400m T12 world-record yesterday.

There was an upset in the Men’s 1500m T54 when Rawat Tana of Thailand beat pre-race favourites multiple World and Paralympic Champion David Weir of Great Britain and world-record holder Marcel Hug of Switzerland into second and fifth places respectively.

Hug has never beaten Weir in a major Championship and both will have another opportunity to claim gold when they go in the 5000m T54.

38 year old Tana had not won a World Championship title since he won the 1500m 13 years ago at Lille 2002. Fellow team-mate Saichon Konjen took bronze.

Speaking after his shock victory Tana said: “I am so happy to win and become world champion! Me and Saichon decided to work together and thankfully our tactic worked. It’s a big surprise to take the gold medal but such a great feeling.”

The evening ended with a chance to look at the form of Richard Browne and Alan Oliveira in the 200m T44. Their rivalry is one of the highlights of the Doha 2015 World Championships and they both qualified for an exciting showdown in the final at 16:21 on 25th October.

Speaking after his heat Richard Browne said: “Tonight’s only goal was to make the final and get ready for tomorrow. I slowed down in the end didn’t want to kill my body it has been a long season so I was just playing it smart. I definitely feel like I can break the world record here in Doha the track is so fast so let’s look ahead.”

Incredible prizes up for grabs for spectators

Doha: As world records fall in the opening days of the Doha 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships fans watching the action at Qatar Sports Club have already started winning too thanks to incredible prizes from sponsors Qatar Airways and Ooredoo.

The Doha 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships have seen an amazing nine new world records in just the first two days of competition as 1300 of the world’s best para-athletes vie for qualifying spots to the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. The World Championships started with a spectacular opening ceremony in Katara on October 21 and cens on Ocober 31.

Qatar Airways the world’s first 5-star airline has offered free regional tickets to lucky fans at the Qatar Sports Club who take a selfie in the stadium or in the fun-filled zone. To take part in this incredible competition spectators must use the hashtag #BeyondIncredible when they post their selfie. The tickets are for all destinations across the region and the competition will be held every two days. The first lucky winner was selected on the 23rd October and other winners will be selected on the 25th 27th and 29th October.

Sponsors Ooreedoo have also started their in-stadium competition with a daily chance for audiences to win an iPhone 6 iPad and Samsung S6 by catching a ball catapulted into the audience by a sling shot.

The Peninsula


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