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U.S. Paralympians show 'sports are for you' [1]

['Lauren Monsen']

Date: 2024-08-22 21:01:00+00:00

In the pursuit of gold, Paralympians strive for greatness and people around the world celebrate their athletic achievement. During the 2024 Paralympic Games, August 28 to September 8, 4,400 athletes will compete in 22 different sports.

See how several U.S. Paralympians, whose skill and determination will be on display in Paris, encourage others to dream big and develop their potential.

Chuck Aoki

Chuck Aoki expresses his competitive nature through sports. Born with a rare genetic disorder that inhibits sensation in his hands and feet, he grew up playing wheelchair basketball and later switched to wheelchair rugby at the University of Arizona.

Now headed to his fourth Paralympic Games, Aoki also works in the University of Michigan’s adaptive sports and fitness department to increase participation in sports.

“Adaptive sports are really for everyone,” Aoki, 33, says in a video on social media. “We’re showing so many people that sports are for you. This is something you can be a part of.”

Already he has won two silver medals and a bronze, but the co-captain of the U.S. men’s wheelchair rugby team says he and his teammates are ready to win gold in Paris.

“I’m a competitor at heart and I want to be the best,” he said. “I want to keep striving to be the absolute best I can be.”

Femita Ayanbeku

After losing her right leg in a car accident at age 11, Femita Ayanbeku wore long pants for years to conceal her prosthetic leg, according to Team USA. In college, she gained confidence and began encouraging other people with disabilities to take pride in their bodies and physical appearance.

For her advocacy, Ayanbeku, from Boston, was awarded a prosthetic “blade” used in adaptive track and field and later took up sprinting. She competed in the Rio Paralympics in 2016 and in Tokyo in 2021 but didn’t win a medal in either Games.

When visiting schools to encourage youth to participate in sports and follow their dreams, she doesn’t shy away from those setbacks. “I learned you have to shake things off and not dwell on them,” Ayanbeku said.

Now 32 and one of the top para sprinters in the world, Ayanbeku hopes to set a world record in Paris. But she says she will be happy to run the best race she can. The Paralympics is “a place where we’re all different, and nobody cares,” she said. “And when we go out in the world, we have to project that.”

Matt Stutzman

Born without arms, Matt Stutzman taught himself archery so he could hunt. The 41-year-old father of three uses his legs and feet not only to shoot arrows but also for everyday activities such as driving.

At the 2012 Paralympics in London, Stutzman was the only archer to compete without arms. He won a silver medal and later set a world record for the longest accurate shot.

Now headed to his fourth and final Paralympics, Stutzman says he is eager to mentor other athletes with similar disabilities, including India’s Sheetal Devi. At 17, Devi is an accomplished para-archer who is making her Paralympic debut in Paris.

“The coolest thing about my sport is that anybody can do it,” Stutzman said. “Anyone who puts in the time can be the best in the world.”

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[1] Url: https://share.america.gov/us-paralympians-show-sports-are-for-you/?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=hero&utm_campaign=paralympics

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