Brazil's Terezinha Guilhermina, bottom, and her guide compete during the women's 400m T-12 for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games held in Beijing, Sept. 11, 2008.
Blind runner Terezinha Guilhermina was already a Paralympic star ahead of last year’s World Championships. She took the bronze in the 400m at the Paralympic Games in Athens, and then followed up in Beijing with a gold in the 200m, a silver in the 100m, and a bronze in the 400m. Her family’s poverty may have spurred her to even greater success. According to her official biography, she went to her father’s house after the Beijing Games to show him her medals, and he had to hold them up to candlelight because he didn’t have electricity. She pledged to buy him a new house—and her subsequent earnings allowed her to do so. At the 2011 World Championships, she won four gold medals and set world records in the 200m (24.98s) and 100m (12.13 seconds) races. Six months later she reduced her 100m time to 12.04s. Last November she said publicly that she would break the 12-second barrier soon. “I’m fine physically and will improve…breaking my own records,” she said. “I’m wearing the shirt of Brazil and I will honor that privilege.”