IPC Athletics World Championships
19-29 July

Looking at Lyon: Men’s 100m T42

Heinrich Popow and Scott Reardon headline a stacked field in the men’s T42 class at the IPC Athletics World Championships. 19 Jul 2013
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Men's 100m T42 Popow and Reardon rivarly - as of 19.07.13

Can Australian Scott Reardon beat Germany's Heinrich Popow in the 100m T42 in Lyon?

ⒸIPC
By IPC

During the last Paralympic cycle, everything centred around the men’s 100m T44. But now, as the lead-up to Rio 2016 begins, the men’s T42 class is starting to gain just as much attention thanks to Popow, Reardon and the rest of the field.

When to watch: Heats: 11:19 on 25 July; Final: 18:55 on 26 July.

What happened last time: Germany’s Heinrich Popow took the gold in this event at the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships, while France’s Clavel Kayitare won the silver and Japan’s Atsushi Yamamoto claimed the bronze.

World-record holder: Just one week ago, on 12 July, Popow set a new world-best time of 12.11 at a meet in his hometown of Leverkusen, Germany.

Who to watch: The rivalry between Popow and Australia’s Scott Reardon has been built up substantially over the last couple of months, and this could be one of the closest sprint finishes we see in Lyon. Popow claimed gold at London 2012 in this race, finishing just three hundredths of a second ahead of Reardon. And that’s just the top of the crop in what could be one of the most stacked lineups at the Championships. The event will also include Canada’s Paralympic champion Earle Connor, along with up-and-coming competitors in Denmark’s 20-year-old Daniel Jorgensen and the USA’s 21-year-old Shaquille Vance.

Why you should watch: During the last Paralympic cycle, everything centred around the men’s 100m T44. But now, as the lead-up to Rio 2016 begins, the men’s T42 class is starting to gain just as much attention thanks to Popow, Reardon and the rest of the field. Both Popow and Reardon are extremely media friendly, and if the Australian slips past the German in Lyon, we’ll see a changing of the guard in this class happen right before our eyes.

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