Hiroyasu Shimizu


Hiroyasu Shimizu is a Japanese speed skater. He has an Olympic gold medal from 1998 in the 500 m and his win made him a hero in his home country. He currently holds the world record for the 100 m speed skating event in 9.43 seconds. He formerly held the 500 m record but was later beaten by fellow Japanese skater Joji Kato.
He is well known for his physical handicaps, with a height of only, and he has an asthma, for which he was featured in a commercial for an asthma drug by GlaxoSmithKline.
He married Japanese fashion model Reiko Takagaki.

World records

Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com