AIS scholarship holder Heath Francis streaked to victory in a world record time of 21.74 at the Bird’s Nest in Beijing to claim gold in the T46 200m.

After qualifying fastest for the finals, Francis ran the perfect race to leave the rest of the field in his wake on a dangerously slippery track.

'Just amazing, what a blur,' Francis said.

'I’m absolutely ecstatic with that. I knew what I had to do but this morning I was really nervous.'

'But it got to about 4 o’clock and the coach came and had a bit of a chat to me. I told her I was a little bit edgy, but she calmed me down. '

'It’s really bizarre … you normally get more nervous the closer the race comes, but I was the opposite.'

Francis, who won three gold and one silver at the 2000 Sydney Games and three silver and two bronze in Athens four years ago, said the atmosphere in China’s National Stadium was “unbelievable”.

'Sydney was so special but obviously it was a home crowd. In the Bird’s Nest where the crowd is just so on top of you, it was very inspiring,' Francis said.

Several athletes slipped in the rain in events preceding the 200m final, but Francis’ only worry was that the sleeve for his running arm would get wet.

'That was the only thing I was a little bit worried about,' he added.

Francis, 26, lives and trains at the AIS in Canberra and has been competing internationally since 1998.

He lost the lower portion of his right arm after it was caught in a meat mincer on the family property when he was seven years old.

Australian Sports Commission CEO Mark Peters paid tribute to Francis amazing performance.

'This gold medal result represents years of hard work from Heath, his AIS coach Iryna Dovoskina and the Institute’s track and field program,' Peters said.

'To achieve a Paralympic gold medal is an incredible performance and a real tribute to Heath’s determination and commitment to his sport and training program.'

The Australian Government, through the Australian Sports Commission (ASC), is a long-time supporter of our Paralympians.

During the current Paralympic cycle, the ASC has worked strategically with the Australian Paralympic Committee (APC) to plan for a successful Beijing Paralympic campaign.

This partnership has included over $26 million in ASC funding dedicated assisting Australia’s Paralympic athletes in their sporting endeavours.

The ASC also provided in excess of $1 million through the Australian Government Sport Training scheme to targeted athletes from the sports of rowing, powerlifting, equestrian, men’s and women’s wheelchair basketball, cycling, athletics, shooting, table tennis, wheelchair rugby, tennis and swimming, to assist in their preparation for Beijing.

In early 2008, the Australian Government confirmed its continued support of the APC, with an additional $22.8 million in funding over a five year period beginning in 2007/08.

This funding supplements existing Government assistance provided through the Australian Sports Commission to underpin the APC’s national campaign to contest the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing and lays the groundwork for the 2010 Winter Games and the 2012 Summer Games.

It will also provide an enhanced capacity to support Australian Paralympic athletes contesting other international events and assist in the televising of the Paralympics.