What’s it like to soar through the air as a packed stadium cheers you on? Long jumper Lex Gillette compares it to being a superhero.
“It definitely is a really cool feeling,” he says. “It makes you feel larger than life.”
Gillette has been totally blind since he was 8 years old. But he didn’t let his disability be a barrier to becoming a champion athlete.
Gillette competes with the aid of a guide, who stands at the end of the runway. He claps his hands and yells “Fly, fly, fly” so Gillette knows where to run. Gillette counts out exactly 16 strides before making his jump.
Gillette holds the world record for the longest jump by an athlete who is totally blind: 22 feet, 2 inches. He’s already a five-time silver medalist at the Paralympics and hopes to win gold in Paris.*
“There’s going to be different challenges and things that might try to trip you up,” he says. “But always believe that you have what it takes to keep pushing forward.”
* At press time, Gillette still needed to officially earn a spot on the U.S. Paralympic team.