The Paralympics start in Paris on Wednesday and it turns out that Team USA athletes are training and coaching right here in the Valley.
Scott Hogsett, Kaitlyn Verfuerth, and Ryan Pinney are all internationally recognized athletes.
Hogsett is the first ever Paralympic athlete ever inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame. His wheelchair rugby team placed three times in the games, winning the gold medal in China.
“It brings tears to my eyes thinking about it right now and how fortunate I was to represent my country,” Hogsett said. “Just a special moment. I’ll never, ever forget it.”
“This was something I had been dreaming about since I was 11,” Verfuerth said. “So, like Scott, yeah, I broke down in tears. I screamed. I didn’t know what to do.”
Verfuerth has proudly represented Team USA four times, competing in wheelchair tennis and paracanoe. Pinney won the bronze in Tokyo in the paracycling relay race.
All three athletes have dedicated their lives to long hours in the gym, becoming some of the best in the world at their high-intensity sports.
“We’re not going to participate, we’re going to compete,” Verfuerth said. “And I think that’s just been, the society, what they think the Paralympics is.”
“At the end of the day, we’re athletes. It’s the stories that bring us together, but we’re athletes,” said Pinney.
