Daniel Martins makes his mark

Paralympic champion smashes world record in Sao Paulo 28 Apr 2019
Imagen
male Para athlete Daniel Martins holds up his arm and fist pumps while holding a gold medal and smiling

Daniel Martins clocked a world record-time on the way to winning gold in the men's 400m at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix

ⒸWagner Carmo/Exemplus/CPB
By World Para Athletics

Brazil's Daniel Martins rounded off action at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in sensational form on Saturday, smashing his own 400m T20 world record.

Twenty-four hours after he was made to work hard for a win against Venezuela’s Luis Felipe Rodrigues, Martins faced his rival again for the multi-class finals. And their second encounter didn’t disappoint.

Martins made clear that he remains the man to beat with a record-breaking performance, smashing the men's 400m T20 world record with a time of 46.86 seconds.

The 23-year-old’s time trimmed 0.36 seconds off his previous best achieved at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Rodrigues’ performance was just as impressive, finishing with a career best 47.81.

"It is a great feeling. I did not plan on breaking the record but I would not let anyone beat me at my place. It is the first time I have gone against Rodrigues but I knew he was a great competitor," said the reigning Paralympic champion.

"Now it is time to tweak a few mistakes I made here and look forward to the Parapan Am Games," added Martins, who remains undefeated in international competition since his debut at the 2015 Doha World Championships.

Paralympic and world champion Petrucio Ferreira (T47) put in another solid performance in the men's 100m final, winning in 10.82. Vision impaired sprinter Lorena Spoladore was the fastest women and clocked 12.37.

Ketyla Teodoro picked up her second win in as many days as she finished the women's 400m in 58.40.

International competitors dominated long-distance events as Mexican Monica Olivia Rodriguez won the women's 1,500m in 5:01.02. Chile's Mauricio Esteban Orrego succeeded in the men's race clocking 4:09.54.

Around 340 athletes from 17 countries competed at Sao Paulo's World Para Athletics Grand Prix. Next up in the 2019 series is the Beijing Grand Prix from 11-13 May.