Swiss Nationals conclude with more world records

Records continued to tumble on the final day of competition at the Swiss Nationals on Sunday (28 May) at the world-renowned fast Arbon track. 30 May 2017
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Brent Lakatos of Canada competes in the men's 400 meter T53 at Olympic Stadium during day 3 of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

Brent Lakatos of Canada competes in the men's 400 meter T53 at Olympic Stadium during day 3 of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

ⒸGetty Images
By IPC

A total of six world and 14 regional records fell at the Swiss Nationals in Arbon on Sunday (28 May), adding to 13 world and 38 regional records set at the same track since last Thursday (25 May).

Canadian Brent Lakatos rounded off a superb few days racing with two more world records in one day.

Just 24 hours after lowering his own 100m T53 world mark, Lakatos was at it again - this time in the 200m (25.04) and 800m T53 (1:31.91).

The Paralympic and world champion, who celebrates his 37th birthday this week, took 0.23 seconds off the 200m mark he set in nearby Nottwil three years ago.

Regional records fell in the same 200m race as well – Tunisia’s Yassine Gharbi (24.80) improved on his own 200m T54 African record whilst Frenchman Pierre Fairbank (25.84) lowered the T53 class European mark.

Lakatos also led home a notably fast field in the 800m T53 as he lowered the mark previously set by the USA’s Josh George at the same venue in 2015.

Thailand’s Pongsakorn Paeyo (1:32.10) and Fairbank (1:32.36) finished second and third respectively and both set regional records.

Lakatos wasn’t the only one to set multiple world records across the three days of competition.

Great Britain’s Hannah Cockroft (1:55.73) also continued her terrific run of form, obliterating the 800m T34 mark she set last year in the run up to the Rio Games.

The five-time Paralympic champion had already lowered her 100m and 400m world records in Arbon and she completed the set on Sunday as she knocked more than one second off the mark she clocked last August.

Tunisia’s Walid Ktila (26.21) notched up his third world record in Arbon, this time in the 200m T34. Ktila’s success came just 24 hours after further lowering the 400m world record which he had broken on Thursday.

The multiple world and Paralympic champion knocked nearly half a second off his best set three years ago. Australia’s Rheed McCracken (26.72) finished second with a new Oceania record; the UAE’s Mohamed Hammadi (26.86) broke his Asian record for third place and even Canada’s Austin Smeenk (27.63) in fifth place broke the Americas record.

Not to be outdone, US wheelchair racer Chelsea McClammer (1:45.90) also secured her third world record in the Swiss town, this time in the women’s 800m T53.

McClammer’s time took a massive 1.55 seconds off the mark set by China’s Hongzhuan Zhou at Rio 2016.

Australia’s reigning 800m T53 world champion Madison de Rozario (1:46.89) finished second with a new Oceania record whilst Great Britain’s Samantha Kinghorn (1:47.60) added to her tally of European records set in Arbon.

Thailand’s defending world champion Rawat Tana (9:49.17) showed no ill-effects from his record-breaking exploits on Thursday as he lowered the men’s 5,000m T54 mark once again.

Swiss star Marcel Hug (9:49.26) lowered his European record in second place; Australia’s Kurt Fearnley (9:49.94) finished fourth lowering his three-day old Oceania record and the Americas record also fell thanks to the USA’s Daniel Romanchuk (9:50.13).

The tally of regional records continued – Great Britain’s Nathalie McGloin (51.29) set a European record in the women’s 200m T51 and Germany’s Stefan Stobel (18:31.77) broke his own men’s 5,000m T51 European record which had stood since 2003.