World record for Paul Blake in T36 800m
University of Bath-based Paralympic athlete Paul Blake set a world record at the London Disability Athletics Grand Prix in Crystal Palace.
Blake broke the previous world record held by Artem Arefyev by 0.81 seconds, shaving 2.4 seconds off his own personal best time. He cut the world record to 2:08.02.
The twenty-one year old from Dorchester was quite shocked by his time. “I thought it was around the 2:09 mark,” he said, “but was amazed that I had run over two seconds quicker than before.”
Paul’s time had progressed by ten seconds since 2009, showing a promising amount of progress due to his training regime with coach Robert Ellchuk.
Earlier this year, Blake also won three medals at the IPC Athletic Championships in Christchurch, New Zealand – a gold in the 400m and two silvers in the 800m and 1500m.
