The 24-year-old visually impaired athlete has Stargardt disease and competes in the T13 Paralympic category.

He will be strong favourite to retain his T13 100m (pictured below) and 200m Beijing titles at the London 2012 Paralympics, but it now looks like he could be competing at the Olympics as well after running a superb time at the National Training Centre in Clermont.

Training alongside a number of high-profile athletes, including triple world championship gold medallist Tyson Gay, it is a track that Smyth knows well, and where he set his personal best of 10.22 last year.

Smyth had clocked a wind-assisted 10.23 in the heats earlier, but it didn't count as a legal run.

"I'm delighted with that."

"It's a fantastic season opener for him," said Smyth's coach Stephen Maguire.

"He made a few mistakes in both races so there's more to come."


Smyth later said on Twitter: "Good day at the track".

"My quickest ever opener 10.24."

"Good things ahead."

Smyth competes in Orlando next week before racing again at the Clermont venue on June 2.

He shares a similar ambition to fellow Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius of South Africa, the double leg amputee, who is also looking to compete at both this year's Olympic and Paralymic Games. 

The 25-year-old from Johannesburg ran 45.20 earlier this year, which is inside the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) qualifiying Olympic A standard of 45.30.

But Pistorius must better the 45.30 mark one more time at an international meet to be eligible for selection for the South African Olympic team.

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July 2011: Pistorius has high hopes for Ireland's Smyth in South Korea