Paralympian wheelchair racers Hannah Dederick and Erik Hightower, along with other wheelchair athletes including Dylan Chalmers, Lauren Fields, Cassie Mitchell, Brock Naylor won multiple events and highlighted the May 18-22 Desert Challenge Games in Mesa, Ariz.
Overall, 340 athletes representing 12 countries competed at this year’s Desert Challenge Games, hosted by Arizona Disabled Sports. The event featured swimming, air rifle, air pistol, track and field and archery competitions for junior and adult athletes and also served as an international classifier for track and field athletes.
Dederick won titles in all four of her wheelchair racing events, taking the women’s 14-and-over T54 800 (2 minutes, 8.77 seconds), women’s 14-and-over T34/53/54 1,500 (4:19:07), women’s 14-and-over T54 400 (1:00.40) and the women’s 14-and-over T54 100 (16.84 seconds).
Hightower won both of his wheelchair racing events, the men’s T54 400 (50.41 seconds) and the men’s T54 100 (14.64 seconds).
Paralympian Daniel Romanchuk won the men’s 14-and-over T34/53/54 800 (1:41.09), while Paralympian and 2012 SPORTS ‘N SPOKES Junior Athlete of the Year Raymond Martin won the men’s 14-and-over T52 100 (17.51 seconds).
Chalmers won the boys 13-and-under T33 800 (5:46.90), boys 13-and-under T33 100 (42.29 seconds), boys 13-and-under T33 200 (1:18.90), boys 13-and-under T33 400 (2:44.06), boys 13-and-under F33 discus (6.22 meters) and boys 13-and-under F33 javelin (5.55 meters).
Fields won the women’s 14-and-over T34 800 (2:51.10), women’s 14-and-over 100 (21.22 seconds) and the women’s 14-and-over T34 200 (42.25 seconds).
Mitchell took the F51 mixed hammer throw (22.69 meters) and the women’s 14-and-over F51 discus (14.20 meters), while Naylor won the boys 13-ans-under T54 100 (29.09 seconds) and boys 13-and-under T54 400 (1:42.18).
For full track and field results, along with a list of winners, visit https://results.wingfootfinish.com/meets/16728. For swimming and air pistol results, visit https://www.arizonadisabledsports.com/schedule.