An eight-foot Paralympian has been forced to sleep on the floor in the athlete village in Paris amid the ongoing Summer Games.
Morteza Mehrzad, who stands at a whopping 8 feet 0.85 inches tall, is part of Iran’s sitting volleyball team competing at the 2024 Paralympic Games, but due to his condition, he has been forced to sleep on the ground.
The 36-year-old was born with a medical condition called acromegaly, which is a rare hormonal disorder where the body produces too much growth hormone, causing body tissues and bones to grow more quickly.
Because acromegaly is uncommon and the physical changes occur slowly over many years, the condition sometimes takes a long time to recognize, but for Mehrzad, he knew when he was a teenager, hitting 6 feet at only 16 years old.
Sadly, he suffered a serious pelvic fracture when he was 15, causing his right leg to stop growing, leaving it shorter compared to the length of his left one.
Despite this though, the volleyball star was discovered by the Iranian head coach who urged him to try and engage in the sport.
After some practice and getting to grips with competitive matches, Mehrzad now has two Paralympic gold medals and two world volleyball titles secured under his belt.
However, he's not been treated like the champion that he is at the Paralympic Games in Paris with the head coach of the Iranian team, Hadi Rezaei, revealing that he is having to sleep on the floor.
"In Tokyo [2020], yes, they have made a special bed, but unfortunately not here [at Paris 2024]," Rezaei told Olympics.com. "He’s going to lie on the floor. He doesn’t have a special bed, but he has got the most important aim in his mind.
"It doesn’t matter for him whether he will lay on the floor or he’s not going to have enough to eat. In any way, he has the mind to become a champion," Rezaei added.
That he does.
As per the outlet, a gold at Paris 2024 would be a hat-trick for Mehrzad who made his Paralympic debut in 2016, also becoming the tallest athlete to ever compete at a Paralympic Games.
We wish him the best of luck in his journey at the Games.
