Australian paralympian James Turner has taken three seconds off the world record while winning gold in the T36, 800 metre race in Rio.
The 19-year-old student from NSW finished in 2.02.40, smashing the previous world record of 2.05.05 and beating his own personal best by almost six seconds.
"I'm tired now but otherwise I feel fantastic," he told Channel 7 after the race. "I didn't know how much of a lead I had, I just focused on the track in front of me and kept putting one foot in front of the other."
Welcome to the world of Paralympic gold medallists, @Jimmy_T36! 800m T36 winner! #WeBelieve
Remarkably, Turner has only been training for this event since November last year. Before then he was a member of Australia's football squad but turned his attention to the track when the team failed to qualify for Rio.
"Although we didn't get into the Paralympics, Athletics [Australia] saw my talents and decided that I could try running 800 metres, and I think I did alright," he said.
Yeah, ya did.
