Ihar Boki is one of the five nominated athletes after starring at the European Open Swimming Championships ©Getty Images

British wheelchair racer Shelby Watson is among the five candidates shortlisted for the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Athlete of the Month award for May after a series of stunning performances at the IPC Athletics Grand Prix in Nottwil.

The 18-year-old lowered her T33 100 metres and 400m world records on the opening day competition, before breaking the existing marks in the 200m and 800m the following day.

Watson had broken the 100m and 200m records earlier in the month, having starred for the British team at the Grand Prix Sauleda in L'Hospitalet.

She faces competition for the monthly award from fellow teenager Shokhsanamkhon Toshpulatova, with the 19-year-old Uzbekistani athlete having marked her international debut in style earlier this month.

Competing at the IPC European Open Swimming Championships in Funchal, Toshpulatova achieved seven Asian records throughout the course of the week and claimed open gold in the women’s SM13 200m individual medley event.

She also claimed a silver medal in the women's S13 100m backstroke event, as well as earning bronze in both the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly.

Belarus’ Ihar Boki ended the European Open Championships as the most decorated swimmer, having successfully defended his men’s 50m and 100m freestyle S13 titles from the 2014 edition of the event in Eindhoven.

He also stormed to victories in the 100m butterfly, 400m freestyle, 100m backstroke and 200m individual medley races to show his form ahead of the Rio 2016 Paralympics, where he will look to repeat his five gold medal haul from London 2012.

Australian canoe star Curtis McGrath earned men's KL2 gold at the Para Canoe World Championships in May
Australian canoe star Curtis McGrath earned men's KL2 gold at the Para Canoe World Championships in May ©Getty Images

Australia’s Curtis McGrath has also been nominated after winning the International Canoe Federation (ICF) Para Canoe World Championship title in the men’s KL2 event.

He finished the competition one second ahead of Markus Swoboda to deny the Austrian star a seventh straight world title in the discipline.

Sonar sailors Alphonsus Doerr, Hugh Freund and Bradley Kendall are the fifth and final nominees for the award, with the Americans having earned gold at the Para World Sailing Championships ahead of defending champions Britain.

The nominations are compiled from submissions by National Paralympic Committees and International Federations.

The public has until 12:00 CEST on June 9 to vote for the athlete they want to be the Allianz Athlete of the Month for May 2016 by clicking here.

United Arab Emirates’ shooter Abdullah Sultan Alaryani, Russia’s wheelchair fencer Andrey Smirnov, British boccia star Stephen McGuire and Colombian swimmer Carlos Serrano have won the first four awards of the year.