Blake Leeper competes in the Men's 200m - T44 heats at the London 2012 Paralympic Games
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Silver medalist Oscar Pistorius of South Africa , gold medalist Alan Fonteles Cardoso Oliveira and bronze medalist Blake Leeper of the United States pose on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Men's 200m - T44 at the London Paralympics
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The American double below knee leg amputee made history in July 2012 by equalling the 100m T43 world record of 10.91 set originally by South African Oscar Pistorius in April 2007.
Despite his world record time, almost one month later Leeper finished fifth in the 100m at the London 2012 Paralympic Games in 11.21.
He did medal in two other events however at his first Paralympic Games.
In the 400m he took silver behind Pistorius and won bronze in the extraordinary 200m race that saw Brazil’s Alan Fonteles Oliveria inflict the South African blade runner’s first defeat over the distance.
Leeper made his international debut in 2009 and first made a name for himself when he competed at the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships. In New Zealand he finished fifth in the 100m, sixth in the 200, and took silver in the 4x100m relay T42-46.
Later in the same year he took silver in the 100m at the Parapan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.
