CLAREMONT, Calif — Training to be a professional athlete is a grueling lifetime commitment, but it’s all worth it for road and track cyclist Sam Bosco. After winning two bronze medals while representing Team USA in the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, she trained the last four years in the hopes of taking home the gold in Tokyo. But unfortunately, the 2020 Summer Games were postponed for another year due to coronavirus.
“I was bummed to say the least that it got postponed, but at the same time, I think it’s kind of a blessing in disguise,” said Bosco. “It made me go back to the basics, because as an athlete, you have to maintain some sort of fitness throughout your whole career.”
Growing up in Anchorage, Alaska, Bosco’s journey to become a cyclist started at 9 years old. She was born with a bowed tibia and underwent a dozen surgeries to correct it. However, complications led to nerve damage, a fused ankle and a right leg shorter than her left. Despite the pain, she persevered and decided to pursue the Paralympics as a road and track cyclist.
In the Paralympics, she competes under the C4 category in the 500m, 3K and scratch race on the track as well as the road race and time trial on the road.
“I wake up every morning with some degree of pain,” explained Bosco. “But I think it all boils down to the attitude you have towards the hardship, towards the adversity and the ability to almost tell yourself you’re not going to let that fly.”
She prefers to train outdoors, but that’s not always possible. For athletes with a disability, especially those that compete in wheelchairs, even getting to a track is far more complicated than it is for able-bodied athletes. For Bosco, this means getting on a trainer everyday that allows her to cycle indoors.
“When I get on the trainer, I just lose track of time and can do anywhere from 20 miles to 100 miles in one sitting without even having to stop for a red light,” said Bosco.
One in five Americans live with a disability so celebrating their excellence is critical to their mental and physical health. According to author David Davis, who wrote the book Wheels of Courage, the idea of the Paralympics started from a small gathering of World War II veterans.
“There’s been this label attached to them,” said Davis. “It’s sort of like this overcoming narrative takes precedent over the sports themselves. And I think the athletes themselves, they’re not thinking of the overcoming part. They’re thinking about winning.”
Despite Tokyo being postponed, Bosco already has her sights set far into the future.
“Every athlete hopes to go out on their own terms,” said Bosco. “So for me that would be finishing strong with going to the L.A. 2028 Games. To me it would be such a huge honor to represent the U.S. in my own backyard and to bring home a gold for everybody. For everyone!”
In the meantime, she is busy supporting the 2020 Angel City Virtual Games presented by The Hartford, a sporting event featuring athletes with disability and mobility impairments. Virtual for the first time, spectators will be able to tune in from home.
If you’d like to purchase a copy of David Davis’s new book, Wheels of Courage, you can do so here.