You’ll know all about Usain Bolt’s Olympic record in the 100m, and you’re probably aware of many other Olympic records.
But do you know how fast the athletes at the Paralympic Games can run? Do you know how fast Andre Brasil can swim 50 metres?
Here’s a list of some of those records which athletes will be targeting at this year’s Paralympic Games in Rio.
100m sprint
The men’s record holder is our own Jason Smyth, a legally blind sprinter who races in the T13 classification. A four-time gold medallist at the Paralympics, Smyth set a record time of 10.46 seconds at London 2012, and will be sprinting in Rio.
The women’s record holder is Zhou Guohua, who is also visually impaired, and runs with a guide. She ran a time of 11.91 at London 2012 in the T12 heats, and went on to win the final, beating Britain's Libby Clegg.
High Jump
The record holder for the men’s high jump is Poland’s Maciej Lepiato, who competes in the T44 category. Maciej jumped 2.12 metres at London 2012, and has since gone on to smash the world record with a height of 2.18m. The Paralympic record to beat, however, remains 2.12 metres.
The women’s record stands at 1.66 metres, set by Petra Quade of Germany in the T46/47 class. Quade broke the record at the seventh Paralympic Games in New York, 32 years ago in 1984.
Javelin
Pengkai Zhu holds the Paralympic record for the men’s javelin, throwing a mammoth 64.38 metres in the F12 class at London 2012 for China. Zhu was a gold medal winner in 2008 in Beijing, winning the F11/12 javelin after having to pull out of the pentathlon event.
The women’s record holder is Tanja Dragic of Serbia. Tanja competed in the F12 category at London 2012 as well, and threw 42.51 metres. She is a gold medal winner, which makes her one of Serbia’s most successful Paralympians of all time.
50m freestyle swimming
The men’s record is held by Brazilian swimmer Andre Brasil, who swam a time of 23.16 seconds in the S10 category at London 2012. Andre has won gold at both of the previous Paralympic Games, and suffered from poliomyelitis as a child.
The women’s record went to Russia’s Oxana Savchenko, once again at London 2012. Oxana swam a time of 26.90 seconds in the S12 category, has an impressive collection of gold medals, and is a visually impaired swimmer.
Long jump
Luis Felipe Gutierrez has the furthest long jump in Paralympic history, jumping 7.54 metres for Cuba in the T13 category at London 2012. Gutierrez is visually impaired, and has competed in both sprinting and jumping events, winning Paralympic medals in both.
The women’s record is held by Ukrainian athlete Oksana Zubkovska, who broke the record at London 2012 in the T12 category. Zubkovska jumped 6.60 metres on her way to claiming the record.
