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Morteza Mehrzad

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Morteza Mehrzad
Morteza Mehrzadselakjani in 2016
Personal information
Full nameMorteza Mehrzadselakjani
NationalityIranian
Born (1987-09-17) 17 September 1987 (age 37)
Kelachay, Gilan, Iran
Height2.47 m (8 ft 1 in)[1][2]
Weight140
Spike201
Block195
Volleyball information
PositionOutside hitter
Number2[3]
Career
Teams
Baran Kerman V.C.
National team
2015–Iran Iran sitting volleyball team
Medal record
Paralympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Sitting volleyball
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Sitting volleyball
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Sitting volleyball
World Para Volleyball Championship
Gold medal – first place 2018 World Para Volleyball Championship 2018 Arnhem
Gold medal – first place 2022 World Para Volleyball Championship 2022 Sarajevo
Asian Para Games
Gold medal – first place 2018 Jakarta Sitting volleyball
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou Sitting volleyball
Sitting Volleyball World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2023 Egypt Sitting volleyball

Morteza Mehrzadselakjani, often referred to as Morteza Mehrzad (born 17 September 1987), is an Iranian volleyball player who plays on the Iran men's national sitting volleyball team. With a height of 2.47 m, he also holds the record for the longest hand in the world with a size of 29 cm. He is known as the tallest living man in Iran and the second tallest living man in the world. He won three gold medals at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, 2020 Summer Paralympics and 2024 Summer Paralympics, is two-time World Para Volleyball champion, three-time gold medalist at the Asian Games with Iran men's national sitting volleyball team, and three-time winner of the Golden Ball award for the best player (won in 2019, 2021 and 2022).

He has acromegaly,[4] and has won the Gold medal at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta, 2018 Sitting Volleyball World Championship and 2020 Summer Paralympics In Tokyo and 2022 Sitting Volleyball World Championship in Sarajevo with Iran men's national sitting volleyball team.[5]

Biography

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Mehrzad was born with a rare medical condition called gigantism which is triggered by excessive growth hormone production in the brain's pituitary gland. He was measured to be over 7 feet 2 inches at the age of 16.[6] When he was 15 he had a bicycle accident which caused a serious pelvic fracture. The accident stopped his right leg from growing, leaving it about 15 centimeters shorter than his left leg.[6][7] He started to feel depressed after the accident[8] and began using a wheelchair, crutches and a walking stick following the accident.

Career

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His talent was spotted and identified by Iran national head coach Hadi Rezaei in 2011 after watching a television program which talked about unusual and differently able talented people.[9] Hadi quickly got in touch with the television network to inquire about Mehrzad who was also one of the disabled talents to have participated in the program.[6][10] Hadi convinced and encouraged Mehrzad to play sitting volleyball.

He was selected for Iran's national team in March 2016 after undergoing training sessions at various regional clubs in Iran and made his international debut in 2016 at the Paralympics qualifiers.[6] Subsequently, he was also selected for the national team to compete at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, which marked his Paralympic debut.[11][12]

In the 2016 Summer Paralympics sitting volleyball final, he was the match top scorer with 28 points for Iran.[13] Iran eventually secured a gold medal after defeating Bosnia and Herzegovina 3–1 in the final.[14][15] He was also the second best spiker during the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

In 2018, he helped Iran win the 2018 Sitting Volleyball World Championship, securing Iran's first world title in 8 years, after a 3–0 victory over defending champions Bosnia and Herzegovina in the final.[12]

In the 2020 Summer Paralympics sitting volleyball tournament, Mehrzad won his second gold medal at the Paralympic Games after Iran defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-0 in the semi-final and Russia 3–1 in the final.

In 2022, he won his second Sitting Volleyball World Championship with Iran's national team in the 2022 Sitting Volleyball World Championship, after a 3–0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the final.

In the 2024 Summer Paralympics sitting volleyball tournament, Mehrzad won his third gold medal at the Paralympic Games with Iran's national sitting volleyball team, after defeating Egypt 3-1 in the semi-final and Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-1 in the final. He was Iran's top scorer in the gold medal match, scoring 25 points.[16]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Shpigel, Ben (12 September 2016). "At 8 Feet Tall, This Paralympian Sat Down and Started Getting Noticed". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  2. ^ "'Still growing': World's tallest athlete blows minds at Paralympics". 2 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  3. ^ "مرتضی، از دیدار با علی کریمی تا طلای المپیک" (in Persian). Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  4. ^ Davies, Gareth A. (13 September 2016). "Paralympics' tallest ever competitor: 'My life has changed playing sitting volleyball'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  5. ^ "Towering over opponents, Iranian giant Mehrzad begins journey to summit of sitting volleyball". Rio2016.com. Rio 2016 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 18 September 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  6. ^ a b c d Decent, Tom (2021-09-01). "World's second-tallest man chasing gold for Iran". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  7. ^ 2021 - 10:40am (2021-09-01). "World's tallest athlete towers over Tokyo". news. Retrieved 2021-09-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ "Paralympics 2021: Meet Morteza Mehrzad, the world's second-tallest man chasing gold for Iran".
  9. ^ "Sitting Volleyball MEHRZADSELAKJANI Morteza - Tokyo 2020 Paralympics". Archived from the original on 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  10. ^ "Sitting volleyball full of 'miracles' for Iran's Mehrzadselakjani & Salehihajikolaei". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  11. ^ "Eight-feet tall athlete is the biggest at the Rio Paralympics". Stuff. 2016-09-12. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  12. ^ a b "Morteza Mehrzadselakjani - Sitting Volleyball | Paralympic Athlete Profile". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  13. ^ "IR Iran are Golden in Rio! > World ParaVolley". World ParaVolley. 2016-09-18. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  14. ^ "Paralympic gold medal my best memory: Morteza Mehrzad". Tehran Times. 2017-03-26. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  15. ^ "Another chapter for Iran-Bosnia rivalry in sitting volleyball at the Paralympic Games". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  16. ^ "Paris 2024: Iran claims eighth men's sitting volleyball gold". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2024-09-07.
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