AARON SCHEIDIES – Paratriathlon
Aaron Scheidies is a blind triathlete who lives north of Seattle with his wife and two small children. He is an eight-time triathlon World Champion and fourteen-time National Champion who has competed in over 300 triathlons, ranging from short sprints to full Ironman distance. While his category of Triathlon was not included in the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, Aaron showcased his talent by competing in the Road Cycling event. Now, his triathlon event is scheduled to be included in the Paralympic Games. Aaron has been steadfast in his training and preparation to compete in the Paralympics yet again, finding time to train in between his job as a physical therapist and his dedication to his family.
The prospect of Aaron excelling at the Games is good – Aaron took home the silver medal from the 2019 Tokyo Test event and the bronze medal at the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships. He has a perfect record for making the podium at International Triathlon Union (TU) events over his entire career.
Everything came to a pause in March when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the entire world. The well-being of his family is Aaron’s priority, and he and his wife followed their pediatrician’s recommendations to remove their children from daycare. Their youngest child is at a high risk for developing lung infections. Limiting exposure is critical. As physical therapists working in the frontlines of healthcare, Aaron and his wife had to carefully consider their options.
To keep their children healthy and safe, Aaron has been staying home caring for them and working two days a week, while his wife continues to work full-time to provide for the family.
Between caring for two young children, limited transportation options, and training facilities being closed, Aaron’s rigorous training schedule has been cut back by 75%. People who are visually impaired or blind rely on public transportation, person-to-person conversation, and their sense of touch to move around in their communities. All of these now pose as health hazards.
With all of these unavoidable obstacles, Aaron has not been able to train as needed. As any high-performance athlete knows, consistency is the key to success. Months into the pandemic, it seemed that his dreams to compete at the Paralympics were put on hold.
With the BOOST2020 grant, Aaron and his wife will be able to hire a much-needed caregiver – who is following COVID-19 protocols – for their children. This will open large blocks of time for Aaron to train and compete to secure his spot at the 2021 Games.
Knowing that our BOOST2020 grant is having such a profound impact not just on Aaron, but also his family, is incredibly meaningful.
Follow Aaron on Instagram and Twitter: @aaron_scheidies and @aaronscheidies respectfully. Aaron also blogs about his experiences as a blind father to a toddler and small child on his website, where he also shares his training updates: www.cdifferentwithaaron.com
