Shaho Mohammadi, a disabled swimmer with Down syndrome from Mahabad, East part of Kurdistan, set a world record and won the gold medal at the Berlin Special Olympics.
Shaho Mohammadi, a swimmer with Down syndrome from Mahabad, participated in the 2023 Berlin Paralympics in Germany as part of the Iranian national team. He started his race with great courage and strength and was ahead of his opponents a full round.
He won the gold medal in a record time of 7 minutes and 46 seconds, and he is likely to enter the Guinness Book of World Records after winning a Special Olympics gold medal at the age of 17.
Keyvan Khoshbakht, head of the Mahabad Sports and Youth Department, told Iranian media that Shaho Mohammadi has participated with the Iranian national team in the 2023 Paralympic Games held in Germany in June. Shaho was the only representative of Iran's swimming contingent at the Olympics.
"Shaho Mohammadi, an athlete with Down syndrome, has a record in swimming for the disabled, gold and silver medals in the Iranian Special Olympics, gold in the Iranian swimming championship for the disabled, and many other valuable positions in his sports career. Shaho is also active in boating, mountaineering, and cycling.
Shaho Mohammadi is known as the “hero angel” in Mahabad. When he left for Germany to participate in the world competition, he was welcomed by the sports-loving people of Mahabad with special respect and enthusiasm.
Who is Shaho Mohammadi?
Shaho Mohammadi, 17, is from Mahabad, East part of Kurdistan. He started swimming professionally at the age of six and is now known as the “heroic angel” in Mahabad.
Shaho Mohammadi was born on September 4, 2005. He suffers from Down syndrome and his parents tried to treat his phobia of water by swimming on the recommendation of his doctors, and now, he is known as a swimming genius in the world.
Shaho has been involved in this field since 2014 under the supervision of Mohsen Mazuchi, a swimmer and coach from Mahabad. In 2108, he set a new record in Iran and the world by swimming 2500 meters. He was able to swim a distance of 2483 meters 49 times (2 laps) in one hour and became the first person in the disabled section of Iran and the world that was able to record the maximum endurance swimming distance in one hour.
Shaho Mohammadi is a special member of the Iranian Paralympics and has two Iranian breaststroke championships. He is the first Down syndrome boater and the first Down syndrome to be able to control a kayak in Iran, and he has won two gold medals in this field. Shaho is the only Down syndrome in the world who can compete with normal swimmers.
Along with swimming and boating, Shaho also enjoys bodybuilding and mountaineering, so he regularly goes to the gym and the mountains of Mahabad and Kurdistan for mountaineering.
In 2021, Shaho Mohammadi was recognized as a worthy citizen of Mahabad by the Hazha news agency in Mahabad.