Jason Smyth
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 4 July 1987 Derry, Northern Ireland |
| Residence | Eglinton, Northern Ireland |
| Height | 177.8 cm (5 ft 10 in) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Running |
| Event(s) | 100m and 200m |
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Medal record
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Jason Smyth (born 4 July 1987, Derry, Northern Ireland) is a legally blind Irish sprint runner. His central vision is affected by Stargardt's disease.[1] He competes in the T12 Paralympic classification, and also in elite non-Paralympic competition. As of July 2014[update], Smyth holds T13 World records in the 100m and 200m events.[2][3] He was selected to represent Northern Ireland at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.[4]
Contents
Career
He won two golds for Ireland at the 2008 Summer Paralympics setting records at the Men's 100 metres T13 and the Men's 200 metres T13, which led some Irish news sources to compare his feat to that of Usain Bolt, who achieved a similar feat at the 2008 Summer Olympics[5]
Smyth made history as the first Paralympian to compete at an open European championships, qualifying for the semi-finals of the 100 metres. Smyth ran 10.43 seconds, finishing 4th in his heat.[6] He just missed out on the final by finishing 4th in semi-finals in a time of 10.47 seconds.[7] Smyth was selected to represent Northern Ireland at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Dehli, but had to withdraw from the team due to a back injury.[8][9]
He won a bronze medal with the Irish relay team in the 4 × 100 m relay at the 2011 European Team Championships.
Smyth hoped to compete in both the Paralympics and the Olympics in 2012. Although he ran 10.22 for the 100m in May 2011, this was 0.04s short of the A time needed to secure a place in the Olympic games.[10][11]
At the 2012 Summer Paralympics, Smyth won Heat 1 of the 100m final breaking the World Record in a time of 10.54 seconds before breaking the record again in the final where he defended his Paralympic title in a time of 10.46 seconds.[12] This final was also marked as the fastest Paralympic 100 metres in history. Smyth equalled his Beijing achievement by winning gold in the Men's T13 200m with a world record time of 21.05 seconds.[13]
Personal life
He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon.[14]
See also
References
- ↑ Irish Times
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- ↑ RTE
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- ↑ Eglinton sprinter Jason Smyth out of Commonwealth Games
- ↑ Athletics NI Statement: Smyth Withdraws from Commonwealth Games
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- ↑ Guardian website, accessed 30/08/12
- ↑ Channel 4 http://paralympics.channel4.com/the-sports/athletics/event/men-100m-t13/phase=atm113900/index.html
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- No local image but image on Wikidata
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from July 2014
- Paralympic athletes of Ireland
- Paralympic gold medalists for Ireland
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Paralympics
- People from Derry
- Irish Mormon missionaries
- 1987 births
- Living people
- People educated at Limavady Grammar School
- Latter Day Saints from Northern Ireland
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics
- Visually impaired track and field athletes
- World record holders in Paralympic athletics
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games
- Commonwealth Games competitors for Northern Ireland
- Medalists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics
