IT will be the third and last Paralympic Games this summer for super sprinter Graeme Ballard – and he’d love to bow out with gold.

The Chorley disabled star, 33, has a Paralympic medal to his name after winning bronze at the Athens Games eight years ago.

It was a more disappointing story in Beijing in 2008, when he missed out on a podium place and, as a result, lost his funding from UK Athletics .

But after a superb 2012, in which he has shattered the 100m world record in the T36 category, Ballard believes anything is possible in the English capital.

“I would expect to be a contender for the gold,” said Ballard. “I’ve had a good year, so if everything goes to plan, I’ve got an excellent chance.

“I’ve got my home crowd behind me, and I like the way the supporters are set back a bit. The crowd won’t be on top of you. In Beijing, it was claustrophobic and I could really feel that. When I was in that stadium, the crowd were on top of you and I think that played a big part in how I performed.

“Hopefully, it could be a full house in London. It holds 80,000 so it should be a great atmosphere.”

Ballard created shockwaves in May’s Paralympic World when he became the first cerebral palsy athlete in history to duck under 12 seconds in the T36 100m.

He beat the 12.15s set by China’s Wa Wai So in 2007 with a time of 11.98s in Manchester, before setting another new PB in the 200m, with 25.12s.

In red hot form, Ballard was expected to defend his titles at the IPC Athletics European Championships in Stadskanaal, Holland, at the end of June.

But he had to settle for third place in the 100m after a time of 12.49s and silver in the 200m after clocking 25.19s.

Ballard was intending to retire after the 2012 Paralympic Games, but has hinted he will continue running until next year’s World Championships if he is successful in London.

n The London Paralympic Games run from August 29 to September 9.