THE tallest ever athlete to compete at the Paralympic Games is Morteza Mehrzadselakjani, who stands at 8ft1in, and he is the star of sitting volleyball for Iran.
Not only is the 29-year-old the tallest athlete to ever compete in the history of the games, but he is also the tallest person in Iran.
The Iranian was diagnosed with acromegaly, which is a rare condition resulting from excess growth hormone, leading to abnormal bone growth.
He is known as Mehrzad for short and he usually gets around on crutches or a wheelchair and fans were amazed after he stood out during the opening ceremony at Rio.
At the age of 15 he suffered from a serious accident on his bicycle and he fractured his pelvis, which stopped his right leg from growing.
This makes walking difficult as his left leg is now six inches longer than his right.
Mehrzad was spotted on television five years ago after a coach saw great potential in him due to his outstanding height advantage.
His physique was picked up by Iran, who are ranked as the best sitting volleyball team in the world.
But despite being the centre of attention in Rio, the athlete has confessed he has faced a lot of tough times during his life.
Speaking to an Iranian TV channel, Mehrzad said: “I was alone, I was depressed, but my life has changed from playing sitting volleyball and being a Paralympian.”
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Iran’s coach Hadi Rezaei shed some light on how his stand out player rose to become a Paralympian.
He said: “We gave him reason to hope, and he wanted it, of course.
“Before he became famous, when he came out of the house, everybody looked at him very strangely.
“And then now that he’s famous, when he comes out, everyone wants to take a picture. He became a champion.”
Other nations feel aggrieved he has been allowed to compete in Rio due to his undeniable advantage.
But there are no rules to stop him from playing sitting volleyball, as the impairment to his legs allow him to take part in the sport.
Mehrzad has gone on to dominate sitting volleyball after being awarded the Best Spiker at the 2016 Intercontinental Cup in China.
And there’s no surprise that he has gone on to shine in the sport, after all, his biggest block reach is 196cm and his highest spike reach is 230cm.
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