The Backstory:
At just two years old, Roderick Sewell had both legs amputate above the knees due to severe deformities that prevented him from walking. A few years later, when Sewell was 8 he became involved in the Challenged Athletes Foundation. Through this organization he found his love for sports and longtime friend Rudy Garcia-Tolson. Sewell’s chose swimming as the sport he wanted to compete in and made his debut with the U.S. Para-swimming team in 2014 at the Pan Pacific Para-swimming Championships. Since then he has gone on to medal in numerous different championships, earning 8 medals total. He is now a member of the U.S. Paralympic swimming team and has plans to compete in the Tokyo 2021 Paralympic Games.

Away from the pool:
Outside of competing, Sewell is a mentor and coach at his local YMCA in San Diego and a Challenged Athletes Foundation ambassador. He is also a first-generation college graduate with a Public Communications degree from the University of Northern Alabama.

In their own words:
“Sports changed my attitude about life,” explains Roderick. “As soon as I started doing sports, I became very competitive and saw everything as a challenge that I had to get through. I started seeing life the same way, as a challenge that I could get through.”

Learn more:
Team USA Page
IPC Page
The New York Times: “A Para-Swimmer Is Using the Gap Year to Dominate Cycling”
Challenged Athletes Foundation: “Roderick Sewell”