Ten Years After The Rio Paralympics, These Moments Still Stand Out

This month marks the 10-year anniversary of the Paralympic Games Rio 2016, which produced plenty of memorable moments for Team USA.

The Americans won 43 of their 115 medals in Rio de Janeiro in track and field, including 16 golds. Wheelchair racer Tatyana McFadden earned six of those medals to become one of the biggest stars of the Paralympics, but she wasn’t alone.

Here are five of the top moments that the U.S. Paralympics track and field team celebrated a decade ago at the first Paralympics held in South America.

McFadden Leads The “McSweep”

Before heading to Rio as members of Team USA, McFadden, Amanda McGrory and Chelsea McClammer were all teammates at the University of Illinois. Once in Brazil, they made sure that there was no room for any other athletes on the medal podium.

Competing at her fourth Summer Paralympics, McFadden led the charge from the three Fighting Illini in the T54 category. She jumped out to a large lead in the women’s 1,500-meter and held off her charging U.S. teammates near the end to win gold, crossing the finish line in a Paralympic record time of 3 minutes, 22.5 seconds.

McGrory earned the silver, and McClammer took the bronze.

Two nights later, the three athletes completed another “McSweep” in the 5,000 meters. McFadden made her move on the last lap to earn the gold in 11:54.07, followed by McClammer with the silver and McGrory claiming the bronze.

McFadden, a multi-sport star from Baltimore, won four golds and two silvers in Rio, which remains her largest medal haul from the seven Paralympics she’s competed in.  

Breanna Clark Wins Gold 40 Years After Her Mother’s Moment

American sprinter Breanna Clark told her mother that she’d win a gold medal in the 400 in Rio, and she kept her promise.

Clark is the daughter of Rosalyn Clark, who earned silver as a member of the U.S. women’s 4x400 relay team at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

With her mother serving as her coach, Clark felt confident that she could win the women’s 400 T20 race at the Paralympics. She won her heat to reach the final, then held off a pair of sprinters down the stretch to claim the gold in 57.79 seconds — just missing the world record of 57.78. 

After earning the gold, the Los Angeles native began blowing kisses to the crowd in a sweet moment that came 40 years after her mother celebrated taking the silver in Montreal.

“For me to see how high she had come and how far she had come and to see that my daughter was out on the field in Rio de Janeiro and just won a gold medal, it brought tears to my whole being,” her mother told Paralympics.org.

Clark defended her gold in the 400 five years later at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. The three-time Paralympian told Paralympics.org that she has fond memories from Rio, but “most important was winning the gold medal and standing on that pedestal.”

Roderick Townsend Jumps To Two Golds  

A little more than a year after he got involved in the Paralympic Movement, Roderick Townsend took full advantage of competing on the world’s largest stage for the first time. The Stockton, California, native showed in Rio that he’s a great all-around jumper instead of simply excellent in the high jump — his signature event.

Townsend won gold medals in the men’s long jump and the high jump T47, respectively, with a performance so strong that he earned a nomination for the Best Male Athlete with a Disability ESPY in 2017. He won the long jump with a mark of 7.41 meters and the high jump by clearing 2.09 meters.

Townsend was the only jumper to clear the 2-meter mark in the high jump, solidifying his place as a budding track star for Team USA.

“It’s extremely humbling,” Townsend told the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum. “I won two gold medals, and that’s always the goal at the Games — to walk away with a victory.”

David Blair Comes Back With A Bang

David Blair took a 16-year hiatus from competing in the discus, but he quickly established himself as a gold-medal contender as soon as he returned to the sport.

A native of Eagle Mountain, Utah, Blair announced his return in a big way when he recorded a throw of 63.61 meters a few months before the Paralympics. The mark broke the world record that his American teammate Jeremy Campbell had set four years earlier.

Blair then shattered his own world record in Rio, claiming the gold in the men’s F44 discus with a throw of 64.11 meters. In doing so, he dethroned Campbell, who had won the gold in the event at the previous two Paralympics.

Deja Young Sweeps 100 and 200 While Battling Depression

Unbeknownst to people around her, Deja Young was struggling with her mental health in the months leading up to her Paralympic debut in Rio.

A native of Mesquite, Texas, Young told ESPN.com that she was dealing with depression in 2016. She felt isolated while away at college and reached such a low point that she attempted suicide a month before the U.S. Paralympics team trials.

“Gratefully, I did not succeed,” Young told ESPN.com. “I eventually got the coping mechanisms that I needed and the help that I needed.”

With her support system by her side, Young put together a dominant performance in Rio to earn a pair of gold medals in the women’s 100 and 200 T47 races. She posted the fastest times in both of her heats, then won the 100 in 12.15 seconds and the 200 in 25.46.

During the Tokyo Games, where Young won bronze in the 100, she shared her story about dealing with mental health issues to help others.

“I get painted as America’s sweetheart or perfect Patty, and I hate it just because I’m not perfect. I struggle like everyone else,” Young told ESPN.com. “Yes, I won two gold medals, but you don’t realize what I’ve been through to get there.”

Alex Abrams has written about Olympic and Paralympic sports for more than 15 years, including as a reporter for major newspapers in Florida, Arkansas and Oklahoma. He is a freelance contributor to usatf.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.