Disclaimer: This is sponsored content. All opinions and views are of the City of Colorado Springs and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum and does not reflect the same of KOAA.
We are just weeks away from the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics. And one local two-time Paralympian is hoping to qualify for the Beijing 2022 Paralympics.
Tyler “TC” Carter recently took a flight to the World Championships in Norway and Sweden. These next three weeks will determine if he makes Beijing.
He tells me his adrenaline is at an all-time high because 15 years of skiing have led to this moment, his final trips down the slopes as an athlete at this level, after a long inspiring journey.
“Three and a half years or so have led to just a month of skiing. And I’m excited, I’m nervous, anxious, but it’s an exciting time and this is what it’s all about,” said Carter.
He was born without his fibula and lost his right leg below the knee at a year old. But he hasn’t let his disability keep him from playing the game and playing it at the elite level. He has the records to prove it. What sets TC apart from other Paralympians? He isn’t sponsored. But he trains just as hard, with a support system that has carried him to this point.
“I’ve been grateful to have amazing parents that always supported me during my whole childhood. They never said that I couldn’t do anything. They always said that you can do anything you want, you just have to set your mind to it and give it everything you have. I’m very lucky to have that support system,” said Carter.
“I’m T.C. I’m me. I’m very lucky to have an amazing program up in Winter Park that I train with. The coaches there have been amazing but it really has been me and my family effort to get me to this point. A lot of gratitude, a lot of thanks to that because it’s been a long journey.”
When he’s not training, he works at the Olympic and Paralympic Museum. He says his second passion is sharing his story, in the hopes that he can inspire others.
TC is a big Captain America fan, and he does refer to himself as one-legged Captain America. He hopes to use his superpowers to qualify for Beijing and come home with the title, “three-time Paralympian.”
