Derek Loccident
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | July 13, 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Paralympic athletics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | T64 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | High jump Long jump Javelin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Derek Loccident (born July 13, 1998) is an American T64 Paralympic athlete.[1]
Early life
[edit]Loccident attended Westmoore High School where he played American football. During his senior year he recorded 53 tackles with one interception and earned All-Conference, All-District and Class 6A All-Star honors.[2] He then played college football at Central Oklahoma. On September 9, 2018, he was crawling under a stopped train when it started moving and severed his left foot. He underwent several surgeries when doctors became concerned about infection in his leg, resulting in its amputation.[3] Prior to the accident, during his redshirt sophomore year, he led the team in tackles with 15 in the team's first two games of the season.[4][5] He missed the remainder of the 2018 season, the 2019 season, and the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He returned to play during the 2021 season as a below-the-knee amputee.[6][7]
Para-athletics career
[edit]After his collegiate football career ended in 2021, Loccident was recruited by U.S. Para track and field coach Joaquim Cruz, to try track and field as a Para athlete. By the end of 2022, he graduated and moved to California so he could train full time at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center as part of the sport's development program.[8]
On May 25, 2023, he was selected to represent the United States at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships, where he made his international debut.[9] He won a silver medal in the long jump T64 event with a distance of 7.39 meters.[10][11]
On March 18, 2024, he was selected to represent the United States at the 2024 World Para Athletics Championships.[12] He will participate in the 100 meter dash, high jump, long jump and javelin.[13] He won a silver medal in the high jump T64 event with a personal-best 2.04 meters in his first-ever international high jump competition. His jump was the first time a T64 athlete had ever surpassed two meters at a World Para Athletics Championships.[14]
Personal life
[edit]OKCThunder Films released a short film titled Steps that premiered at the DeadCENTER Film Festival on June 10, 2023, that documents Loccident's story.[15][16]
References
[edit]- ^ "Derek Loccident". teamusa.com. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ "Derek Loccident". bronchosports.com. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Carlson, Jenni (April 5, 2021). "A train accident severed a UCO football player's foot in 2018. He played again last week". The Oklahoman. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ "Central Oklahoma's Derek Loccident loses foot in train incident". ESPN.com. September 10, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Allen, Kevin (September 10, 2018). "Central Oklahoma football player Derek Loccident loses foot in train accident". USA Today. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Torp, Karl (September 3, 2021). "Red Dirt Diaries: UCO Football Player Makes Remarkable Comeback After Horrifying Accident". news9.com. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ "Tragedy to Triumph: How UCO Football Player Derek Loccident is Using A Life Threatening Accident to Inspire". kfor.com. April 2, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Lieberman, Stuart (September 7, 2023). "Building On World Championships Success, Derek Loccident Has Loftier Goals For The Paralympics". usparatf.org. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ^ Gowdy, Kristen (May 25, 2023). "Forty-Five Athletes Selected To Represent Team USA At 2023 World Para Athletics Championships". teamusa.org. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Treacy, Emily (November 1, 2023). "Derek Loccident Jumps to the Front of the Line". livingwithamplitude.com. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ "Results Book" (PDF). 2023 World Para Athletics Championships. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 9, 2024. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
- ^ Gowdy, Kristen (March 18, 2024). "Thirty Athletes Set to Compete for Team USA at 2024 World Para Athletics Championships". usparatf.org. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Drumwright, Steve (May 13, 2024). "Sprints, Throws And Jumps? It's All In A Day's Work For Derek Loccident". usparatf.org. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Gowdy, Kristen (May 18, 2024). "Blackwell, Loccident set Championship Records, Team USA Earns Three Medals on Day Two in Kobe". usparatf.org. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ Mussatto, Joe (June 10, 2023). "OKC Thunder Films debuts 'Steps,' story of Derek Loccident at deadCenter". The Oklahoman. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
- ^ "OKCThunder Films Explores "Steps" of Oklahoma Disabled Athlete Derek Loccident". NBA.com. May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
External links
[edit]- 1998 births
- Living people
- American amputees
- American male sprinters
- American male high jumpers
- American male long jumpers
- Central Oklahoma Bronchos football players
- Medalists at the World Para Athletics Championships
- Paralympic track and field athletes for the United States
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic silver medalists for the United States
- Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field)
- Track and field athletes from Oklahoma
- 21st-century American sportsmen