Paralympics-Baghdad orphan Kelly eyes pool gold for Australia

MELBOURNE, Aug 29 (Reuters) - He has described himself as

the happiest man alive, yet in 20 years Iraq-born swimmer Ahmed

Kelly has risen above extreme hardship to become one of

Australia's leading medal hopes at the London Paralympics.

Kelly, along with his brother Emmanuel, was born severely

disabled, with under-developed limbs as a result of their

parents' exposure to chemical weapons.

He was left on an orphanage doorstep in Baghdad, a world

away from the Aquatic Centre pool that he will dive into for his

100 freestyle, 50 breaststroke and 150 individual medley events

starting next week.

In 2000, the boys were brought to Australia for surgery and

were adopted by humanitarian Moira Kelly, who would later add

Trishna and Krishna to the family, conjoined twins who were

separated in a groundbreaking surgery in 2009.

Kelly took to Australia's sports-mad culture with gusto, and

loved playing Australian Rules football with prosthetic limbs.

But the high-contact indigenous football code took a toll on

his body, and he later took up swimming after participating in

the Australian Paralympic Committee's talent identification

programme.

Kelly, who swims with prosthetic legs but without arms, was

paired with coach Brad Kelly, who has helped him channel raw

determination into stunning success.

"When we started, I had a guy with no arms and legs who

wanted to be the best he could be," Harris told Reuters.

"There's nothing too hard for him ... He'll always say yes."

Kelly soon began competing at an elite level and broke the

world record in the 100 breaststroke in 2010 and 2011.

Now, only four years after he first began swimming, the

20-year-old is competing in his first Paralympics.

The journey to London has been far from easy.

To qualify, Kelly has had to shift from racing the 100

breaststroke -- an endurance event in Paralympic terms -- to

sprinting in the 50 distance.

While mastering the new discipline and training hard in his

other events, Kelly has had to juggle school work while

supporting his mother's charity, the Children First Foundation.

"It has been difficult, but you have to do your best," Kelly

told Reuters. "It's tough, but it's meant to be tough ... You

have to know what you're doing every lap for."

Kelly and his coach Harris remain as ambitious as ever.

"I love sports, I want to keep swimming well, keep adapting,

and I'm still learning about these things," said Kelly, who has

already set his heart on competing at the 2016 Paralympics in

Rio.

"I want to get the best out of myself. But everyone has been

so supportive and I couldn't have done it without them."

(Editing by Ian Ransom and Greg Stutchbury)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/paralympics-baghdad-orphan-kelly-eyes-pool-gold-australia-022345613--spt.html

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