Extraordinary Health Magazine Extraordinary Health Vol 28 | Page 20

Regas Woods

Paralympics "Blade Runner" Defies the Odds
by Rhonda Price
Many stories abound of athletes
sacrificing everything for the sake
of competing in high level sports, but
few can match the difficult journey
of 35-year-old Paralympic track and
field competitor Regas Woods. A birth
defect prevented the bones in his legs
from growing, so both were amputated
above the knees when he was three.
Nevertheless, he fell in love with track
and field when he was 10 and dreamed
of competing as an Olympian.
“Lots of people said I couldn’t do
it or that I would have to compete
in a wheelchair,” said Woods, a
Garden of Life® brand ambasador.
“I was determined to compete with
prosthetics, but I was one of the few
people doing it 20 years ago. For my
events in the long jump and sprint races,
I’ve always used a prosthetic that includes
a socket, pylon and blades.”

Woods is co-founder of the Never Say Never Foundation
(www.neversayneverfoundation.org) which instills positive
and active lifestyles for kids with limb loss. His hometown
of Dunnellon, Florida has a Go Fund Me Page at
www.gofundme.com/o5nrko to support his training and
travel expenses. The Rio International Paralympic Games
were held September 7-18 with 4,350 athletes from 160
nations competing in 22 sports.

18 Extraordinary Health™ • Vol 28

Woods trained hard and pursued his
dream for two decades while working
full-time at a prosthetics company
to support his family. Three years ago
he met Paralympics coach Tony McCall,
who agreed the goal of competing
in the 2016 Paralympics Games was
within reach. With perseverance and
McCall’s guidance, Woods became a
member of the U.S. team in 2013 and
won gold medals in the 100 and 200
meter sprints and long jump at the
2014 U.S. National Championships.
The only thing standing in the way
of achieving his dream this year was
to qualify for the U.S. Team in Charlotte
in July. Unfortunately, that’s when fate
conspired to throw Woods a few more
hard knocks.
“The prosthetics company I worked
for said they couldn’t give me any
additional time off and they fired me,”
said Woods. “I was devastated because

this was the only job I had ever had
and it was the sole means of income to
support my family. They tried to pay me
to stay quiet, but I refused their offer.”
After losing his job, Woods said he was
even more determined and “tunnel
vision” kept him squarely focused on his
goal. He qualified for the 100 and 200
meter sprints in Charlotte, but suffered
what could have been a horrible blow
in the long jump when a prosthetic
blade suddenly ripped apart while he
was running. Woods said he vividly
recalled how the crowd gasped and
then grew quiet after he landed with
a thump in the sand.
“An official ran up to me to see if I
was okay. I knew that one of my blades
was ruined and there was no time to
get another one. It was an awful break,
but nothing was going to stop me from
jumping again. I was laughing and the
official thought I was crazy!”
Showing the same legendary courage
gymnast Keri Strug mustered when she
hopped on one leg to finish a teamwinning vault in the 1996 Olympics,
Woods quickly borrowed a blade from
a teammate that didn’t come close to
fitting him correctly. With one sturdy
blade and another wobbly one, he
teetered awkwardly down the runway
and sailed into the air, landing squarely
in the sand. Deafening cheers from the
crowd confirmed it was a first place
finish and a guarantee he would be
going to Rio.
“My family was there watching and my
kids were excited, so there was no way
I was going to give up!” Woods said.
“I didn’t care if I had to crawl on one
leg. Nothing was going to stop me!”