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Cedar Rapids native Jessica Heims sets a paralympic discus world record at Drake Relays
Cedar Rapids native Jessica Heims has become an international track and field star.
Heims, a graduate of Prairie High School and the University of Northern Iowa, already has qualified for three Paralympic Games. On Friday at the Drake Relays, Heims cemented her place in history, setting a world record in the discus.
Heims had a toss of 37.23 meters (122 feet, 3 inches) to break the previous F64 paralympic mark of 36.53 meters (119-10) set by Poland’s Faustyna Kotlowska in 2001.
For Heims, there was no other place in the world she would rather set a world record than Drake Stadium.
“It’s all so humbling. It really caught me by surprise,” Heims said. “There is no better place to do it than the blue oval. I am very, very thrilled.”
Heims was born with amniotic band syndrome, a condition where tissue from the amniotic sac wrap around and compromise an unborn babies’ limbs. She had her left leg amputated below the knee when she was a toddler.
