Jason Smyth Wins World Double

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Jason Smyth put in another superb performance to complete the sprint double at the IPC World Athletics Championships in Lyon.

Smyth, who won the T13 200m on Sunday, won the 100m in 10.61 seconds - a new competition record but short of his 10.46 Paralympic world best.

The Londonderry man made a solid start and finished strongly ahead of South Africa's Jonathan Ntutu (10.61).

"Coming to major championships it is all about winning," said Smyth

"The times are irrelevant.

"I am delighted. I have put a lot of hard work to get here.

"If you look back at the race there are always things you can improve but crossing the line first is all important."

Smyth said his big target was Rio 2016 and qualifying for the Olympics as well as the Paralympics.

"I tried to do both in London and was four hundredths away from doing it," added the 26-year-old from Eglinton.

"Being so close, it would be silly not to set that as a goal going forward."

Smyth, the fastest Paralympian of all time, admitted he was still annoyed at not getting an invitation to the Anniversary Games in London this weekend.

"To be back in that stadium, with the support we had in London, it is frustrating to be missing out on that but there is not much I can do.

"When I look at what I have achieved in Paralympic sport - I started in 2005, we are now in 2013 and I have never been beaten.

"I have also made semi-finals of the European Championships and World Championships and only narrowly missed out on the Olympics.

"I feel I have achieved quite a lot and I probably don't get as much recognition as others who haven't quite done the same."

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Zanardi Targers Paralympics Podium

Paralympic hand cyclist Alex Zanardi knows the course being used at Brands Hatch next week like the back of his hand - because of his time as a Formula One racing driver.

The 45-year-old Italian suffered a horrific crash in 2001, while competing as a Champ Car (CART) driver, which saw him lose his legs - but it could have been so much worse.

As he pulled out of a pit stop in the 2001 EuroSpeedway Lausitz race on September 15, the two-time CART champion, driving for Mo Nunn Racing, was leading with 12 laps left. 

But he lost control of his car and stalled, causing Canadian driver Alex Tagliani to crash into his Reynard-Honda at 217mph which split both the car - and Zanardi - in two.

The accident in Germany left the driver with less than one litre of blood in his body and his doctors could not comprehend how he had survived.

Now Zanardi, who raced for Jordan, Minardi, Lotus and Williams in F1, competes on a three-wheeled hand bike and is going for gold at the Paralympics.

'Last time I was here I was going about five times faster but I still love this circuit,' Zanardi told the Guardian.

'What saved me was the clean break,' he explained about his injuries. 'I could have easily died right there from the impact.

'They compared my injuries to a Nasa study that charts the critical point beyond which a human body cannot survive and told me I was officially a dead man.'

But despite his horrific crash, Zanardi was more determined than ever to start racing again.

'The first thing I asked myself was "How am I going to do all the things I want to do with no legs?"' he said.

Zanardi became a World Touring Car Championship driver and started racking up wins immediately.

'To drive the BMW 320 I convinced the team to create a special brake pedal that I could use with my prosthetic leg,' he said. 'Having no legs doesn’t mean you can’t drive fast and I wasn’t going to be happy scoring the odd point, I thought it was possible to win and went for it.'

In 2007 discovered hand biking - where the pedals are turned by riders' hands rather than their feet - and after only four weeks training came fourth in the hand bike section of the New York marathon.

He retired from racing in 2009 and started in his bid to get into the Italy squad for the London 2012 Paralympics.

At his fourth attempt he finally won the New York marathon and is expected to push for gold at the Games.

Zanardi has modified his own bike to suit his physique perfectly, and even described his carbon-fibre seat as 'like a Cinderella shoe'.

'It’s not much different to Formula One where they are improving the cars constantly,' he said. 'The difference is every hand biker needs a different bike depending on their residual ability,' he said.

'If some people could fly, Usain Bolt would feel disabled,' he said. 'Doing the best with what I have is the biggest challenge.'

Zanardi started in Formula One in 1991 at Jordan, before guest driving for Minardi and eventually ending up at Lotus in 1993. 

He crashed during practice for the Belgian Grand Prix and was injured for the start of the 1994 season. 

Zanardi made the switch to Champ Car racing in 1996 but in 1998 he signed a three-year deal with Williams back in F1. 

However after his contract expired he went back to CART and it was in the Lausitz race on September 15 2001 that the accident that shaped the rest of his career occurred. 

He added: 'My parents taught me that I could always improve on things,' he said. 'After my crash I never doubted it would be hard but I would be lying to say this new life has been a surprise to me. I did it because I thought it was possible.'

Factfile

Born: October 23, 1966 in Bologna, Italy

Career F1 races: 41

First F1 race: 1991 Spanish Grand Prix

Last F1 race: 1999 Japanese Grand Prix

Career F1 Points: 1

CART titles: 1997, 1998

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Pistorius Believes Experince Key

Oscar Pistorius believes his Paralympic experience will be key when it comes to the 100m final at this year's Games.

The South African double amputee sprinter was beaten to gold by American Jerome Singleton at last year's World Championships in New Zealand.

Their re-match on Thursday 6 September is one of the most keenly anticipated races at the Games.

"I have experience from previous Games in Beijing and Athens and I think that counts a lot," said Pistorius.

"I hope it works in my favour because I know the 100m will be a challenge. In Athens I came third by eight-hundredths of a second, in Beijing I won gold by three-hundredths of a second," he told BBC Sport.

"The 100m has never been a sure bet and it is nobody's medal until you cross the line.

"The event is unbelievably close and unbelievably challenging, and I won't be so self-assured going into that race.

"There are three or four guys who I have kept my eye on - not only Jerome but also my compatriot Arnu Fourie, who has posted one of the fastest times so far this year."

With 100 days to go to the start of the 2012 Paralympics, Pistorius, who will be competing at the Paralympic World Cup in Manchester on Tuesday, has a busy schedule as he hopes to defend his three Paralympic titles in London and also qualify for the 400m at the Olympics.

The 25-year-old, who reached the semi-finals of the 400m at last year's World Championships in Daegu and was also part of the 4x400m relay team which won silver though he missed out on the final, needs to run the A qualifying standard again.

After Manchester he will travel to the Czech Republic to race in Ostrava before the Diamond League meetings in Prefontaine, Oregon and New York as he bids to achieve the 45.30s qualifying time for a second time this year.

"I've been preparing for the Olympics for five years and I missed Beijing by a quarter of a second, so that is something I really want to achieve, and to run at the Paralympics afterwards is really something special and I am just as excited for that," he added.

"I have the 4x100m relay for the first time at the Paralympics which is probably one of the most exciting things for me.

"I find relays unbelievably fun, especially the 4x100, and South Africa ran at the Worlds last year and won with very little practice, but we have a strong team and gold is a goal for us."

Singleton, who won a surprise silver four years ago in addition to 4x100m relay gold, said he was happy to be part of a golden era of amputee sprinting and is relishing the rivalry with Pistorius.

"Of course Oscar is like a twin brother who you just want to beat at things, but I'm happy for him and I respect all my competitors for what they do," he said.

"But when it comes to rivalry, that's always been in sport - Muhammad Ali had George Foreman, Magic Johnson had Larry Bird and now Oscar Pistorius has Jerome Singleton or maybe it should be the the other way around as I am the world champion.

"It is something that is very big and I'm happy to be part of it and I'm thankful that at this time, amputee sprinting has gone to a whole new level."

Michael McKillop Sets London Record

Irish paralympian Michael McKillop became the first male athlete to set a new world record in the London 2012 Olympic Stadium on Tuesday.