“SUPER SPIKE!” the PA announcer bellows inside the electric party atmosphere of the North Arena on the outskirts of Paris.
Arms outstretched wide, Morteza Mehrzad, sitting on the floor in his red top and black trousers, lets out a roar to celebrate yet another punishing blow which immediately ends the rally.
It is just one of the 27 points, the most accumulated by any one player, that helped Iran win a record-extending eighth Sitting Volleyball Paralympic title after beating Bosnia and Herzegovina in the final by three sets to one (22-25, 30-28, 25-16, 25-14). When Mehrzad briefly stood to shake hands with his opponent at the end of the game, the net came up to his midriff. His team-mates came up level with his sternum.
Mehrzad slams home another winner (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Standing at 8ft 1in (2m 46cm) — larger than most doors, longer than most beds — the 36-year-old is the second tallest man in the world.
Born with gigantism, his impairment has posed some problems. Mehrzad had been sleeping on the floor in the Paralympic village. The Iran team requested an extended bed before the Games but the two extensions provided to a standard athlete’s bed were insufficient. A third extension was made and his coach Hadi Rezaeigarkani and Paris 2024 organisers confirmed this week that the issue had been resolved and Mehrzad was sleeping comfortably in the village.
Indeed it was Rezaeigarkani — who has won eight gold medals from his 10 Paralympic games, first as a coach and then as a player — who spotted Mehrzad on an Iranian television programme featuring people with physical abnormalities. The coach contacted Merhzad — who uses a wheelchair having injured his pelvis in a bike accident at the age of 16, stopping the growth of his right leg — and got him into the sport.
Mehrzad rarely went out in public, Rezaeigarkani has said in previous interviews, because his height and facial features — the latter caused by acromegaly, a hormonal disorder — attracted strange looks.
“I was a depressed guy and my life changed completely with volleyball,” Mehrzad told Esportivo. Rezaeigarkani believes the sport gave him hope.
Mehrzad was a key player in Iran’s gold medal pursuit (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Having stood out in public and received unwanted attention, Mehrzad is now head and shoulders above the rest courtesy of his sporting prowess.
Evidently, there are significant advantages to having such a tall player on your team. When sitting, Mehrzad has a maximum reach of 6ft 4in (1.96m). His hand stretches 81cm above the height of the net, allowing him to generate immense power as he kills off points with winning shots. As an outside hitter, that is his job.
Mehrzad has to make sure his body is in the right position, however, and such a large frame requires agile movement. Sweat dripping down his face, he pushes his lower body on the floor, legs extended, up and down the court swiftly, reading the quick interchange of play.
Mehrzad’s reach stretches 81cm above the height of the net (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
In fact, as well as his menacing spikes, what stood out most on Friday night is that Mehrzad, at the changing of ends or time-outs, always moved by shuffling and rarely got to his feet. “Morteza is the best spiker and one of the most important players in the world,” said his best friend and the final’s fastest server (73km/h), Meisam Ali Pour, speaking via a translator after the game. “He knows what to do, but he can’t do it by himself.”
Silver medallist Stevan Crnobrnja of Bosnia viewed Mehrzad as just another one of Iran’s great players. They accepted they could not do much about his height advantage, but focused on neutralising others who were crucial in setting him up. If one of his team-mates does not set or pass the ball, Mehrzad is helpless.
Ali Pour, who, going into the final, had contributed more points (39) than Mehrzad (28), emphasised the need for teamwork. “If all the best players in the world play together, they will not be able to beat Iran,” he said.
Mehrzad towers above his team-mates (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Expressive and animated on the court, off the court, Mehrzad, who was not available for interview, is shy, reserved and does not like attention.
His team-mates and coach see him as just one member of a very united group. “My team has 12 stars, Morteza is one of them,” said coach Rezaeigarkani. “We did not have Morteza before and we will not (always) have him in the future.”
When asked what the secret to Iran’s success is, Rezaeigarkan replied: “Work, work, work.”
(Top photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images)