I WAS RIDING a dirt bike when I was 14 near my home in San Juan Capistrano, California, and got T-boned by a car. I had to have my lower right leg amputated. High school was difficult because kids would stare at my prosthetic. I wore long pants every day because I felt insecure about it. Sports was my identity and I started to run track, and in college I really started to accept myself and feel more comfortable in my own skin. I have a bunch of prosthetics, for daily wear, sprinting, jumping, water—I surf—and the biggest challenge is keeping the socket comfortable, because even a weight change of five pounds can cause blisters and pain.
One of my goals is to win gold at the Paris 2024 and L. A. 2028 Paralympic Games. I’ve learned to focus on the process of training, on the things I can control and can improve, and not judge myself on the results. I journal after every training session and write down what I learned, any tips my coach said, and what I want to improve—basically, I judge my process.
Since I’m an amputee, my disability is visual, my struggles are obvious, but everybody has something they’re going through. I hope owning my differences and embracing my uniqueness encourages and inspires other people to own their differences, because we’re all different and all unique." —as told to Ben Court
This story appears in the October 2022 issue of Men's Health
Ben Court is the Executive Editor of Men's Health. He has a decade of experience writing and editing stories about peak performance, as it relates to health, nutrition, fitness, weight loss, and sex and relationships. He enjoys yoga, cycling, running, swimming, lifting, grilling, and napping.
