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LEMOORE, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – An Army seasoned from Lemoore is bringing location 2 golden medals from this year’s National Veterans Wheelchair Games, but helium says his top triumph has been reclaiming a consciousness of purpose.
37-year-old Anthony Martinez competed successful aggregate events astatine the 2025 Games successful Minneapolis, including wheelchair softball, disc golf, and powerlifting - his longtime passion.
The Central Valley autochthonal seat pressed 465 pounds and deadlifted 700 pounds to gain golden successful some events.
“I emotion lifting weights so, truthful much,” Martinez said. “Because erstwhile I’m doing it, I don’t consciousness disabled. I consciousness conscionable similar I’m a regular, mean person.”
Martinez served successful the U.S. Army from 2005 to 2008 arsenic a parachute rigger and deployed to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
After returning location safely astir 5 years later, a car clang near him pinned nether a vehicle. First responders had to use a tourniquet, starring to the eventual amputation of his close leg.
“I inactive get stuck successful the caput sometimes. I get into small ruts,” helium said. “But erstwhile I get retired of my comfortableness zone, [competing] is that renewed consciousness of being. I think, ‘OK, truthful what?' I’m successful a wheelchair. It’s truly not that serious.”
Martinez has competed successful the National Veterans Wheelchair Games for 4 years. The event, hosted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Paralyzed Veterans of America, is the largest yearly adaptive sports contention for subject veterans with disabilities.
This year, Martinez entered events ranging from adaptive fittingness to discus and says he's discovered a caller emotion for squad sports astatine the games.
"Even though I’m much of an idiosyncratic individual - being capable to person a squad that you tin number on, it’s a caller benignant of feeling,” Martinez said. “This is similar a household reunion,” helium said. “We springiness each different a hard clip - but we’re each household here.”
Now much than a decennary into beingness arsenic an amputee, Martinez says the competition, and the camaraderie, person helped him propulsion past the limits helium erstwhile believed helium had.
“It’s maine versus me,” helium said. “When you’re lifting weights, I don’t consciousness similar anything’s holding maine back. I consciousness like, I got this.”
The National Veterans Wheelchair Games are unfastened to U.S. veterans with spinal cord injuries, amputations, aggregate sclerosis, oregon different neurological conditions requiring the usage of a wheelchair for competition.
Now successful its 44th year, organizers accidental the lawsuit aims to observe the determination and athleticism of disabled veterans crossed the country.
