Nelacey

Porter

Leading up to the 2008 Paralympic Games, Nelacey Porter lived and trained as a resident athlete at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. In Beijing, Porter competed in two events, the men's 100m T11 and the men's 4 x 100m T11-13.

Porter competes in the visually impaired class of track and field athletes. He was born with Retinitis Pigmentosa/Macular Degeneration, which has led to a near complete loss of vision. Porter, always active as a child, participated in various sports throughout his youth and into high school, until it became too hard for him to see a baseball. He then moved onto track and field, where his coach told him about the Paralympic Games. Porter competed at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece, where he placed fourth in the B2 100m and sixth in the B2 200m. In 2005, Porter moved to the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista to work with Paralympic Coach Joaquim Cruz.  He also won the 2006 Paralympic World Championships in the B2 200m.

Porter has received publicity on his accomplishments. In October 2004, he was featured on the Oprah Winfrey show and Good Morning America after inspiring another visually impaired child from Salem, Ore. Most recently, in the fall of 2007, Porter was featured on a ‘San Diego to Beijing' interview piece done by KNSD San Diego.

Major Achievements

• 2008: U.S. Paralympic Team member, Track & Field - Paralympic Games, Beijing, China
• 2008: National Champion, 100m - 2008 U.S. Paralympics Team Trials - Track & Field, Tempe, Ariz.
• 2007: Gold medal, 200m - U.S. Paralympics National Championships, Marietta, Ga.
• 2006: National Champion, 100m and 200m - IPC Athletics World Championships, Assen, The Netherlands
• 2004: U.S. Paralympic Track and Field team member - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece