Sports discipline: Athletics
Production company: NHK – Japan Broadcasting Corporation
JAPAN 2019, 49 min
Director: Shin Hashiba
Editing: Kazuya Nishitani
Photos: Yoshihiro Kodama
Producer: Genta Kyuki
The performances at the Paralympic Games amaze spectators in every competition. Visually impaired athletes and their guide runners are no exception. Each pair is tied together with a 10 cm long rope that allows the para athlete to run at maximum speed. Two world-record-holding pairs are training for 2020: an American duo that sprints 100 meters at 11 seconds and a Japanese twosome that completes a full marathon in three hours. Their interactions and the latest in scientific analyses reveal an equal partnership of two top athletes pushing each other to reach heights higher than they could on their own.