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Athlete becomes first man with Down’s syndrome to finish Ironman triathlon

Doctors told him he’d never be able to compete in such an event 

Josh Marcus
Tuesday 10 November 2020 10:42 GMT
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Chris Nikic, a 21-year-old from Florida, is the first athlete with Down’s syndrome to finish an Ironman Triathlon, after completing the Ironman Florida on Saturday.

He celebrated the historic achievement, which meant swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles, and running a full marathon, telling fans “anything is possible”.

Sport organisations and famous athletes like Billie Jean King quickly reached out to congratulate him.

Doctors told Mr Nikic, a Maitland, Florida native, and his family that such achievements would not be possible for someone with Down’s syndrome. He had his first surgery, to repair holes in his heart, before he was one year old, and used a walker until age three.

“The doctors and experts said I couldn’t do anything,” he told the Orlando Sentinel. “So I said, ‘Doctor! Experts! You need to stop doing this to me. You’re wrong!’”

He also had multiple surgeries to reconstruct his ear canals, which are prone to infection for people with Down’s syndrome, which cost him years worth of triathlon training.

The barriers didn’t stop there. Coronavirus meant cancelling a half-Iron Man event he planned to compete in, so he rigged his own model course instead.

He completed the multi-stage race in 16 hours, 46 minutes and nine seconds.

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