MALONE DIDN'T DO IT ALONE

New US track star credits his mother for pushing him after winning 2nd Paris medal

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Noah Malone, one of several young and charismatic stars of the US Paralympic athletics team, credits his mother for pushing her reluctant son to achieve his goals, admitting "I did not even like (the sport) at first”.

So it was to his family - there are seven of them in Paris, including his mother LaTasha Sturdivant that a beaming Malone ran straight to after winning the T12 400 metres silver medal on Sept 5, as rain bucketed down at the Stade de France.

The 22-year-old had already won 100m gold - upgraded from silver after the Turkish winner was disqualified - and could add a third medal in the 4x100m relay.

Malone - who at age 13 was diagnosed with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON), a rare, incurable genetic disease that leads to central vision loss also has a relay gold and 100m and 400m silvers from the Tokyo Games in 2021.