TAMPA, Fla. — Berkeley Prep alumnus Declan Farmer won gold medals in his first two Paralympic games, now he goes for a third in Beijing.
Farmer was born a bilateral amputee, the left leg above the knee, the right below.
“I’ve been using prosthetics since I was a 1-year-old,” Farmer said.
The Berkeley Prep alumnus was also born a winner. He collected gold medals as a member of Team USA’s sled hockey team at his first two Paralympic Games.
“They are back at my parent's house,” he told ABC Action News sports anchor Kyle Burger. “They are tucked away.”
Before finding sled hockey at eight years old, Farmer tried wrestling, tee-ball, and soccer, but without the success he hoped for.
“I was a competitive kid. It was kind of frustrating not being able to excel in any of those sports,” Farmer said. “It was awesome when I found sled hockey for the first time.”
He joined the Tampa Bay Lightning sled hockey team and began to make his mark on the national scene with an invite to attend USA Hockey’s player development camps. At age 14, he made his first U.S. National Team.
Farmer collected gold medals at the Games in Sochi (2014) and PhyeongChang (2018). Now, he’s hoping to win a third gold. All this winning every four years never gets old.
“Definitely not. It happens too seldom to get old,” Farmer said. “You never know what’s going to happen. It’s just so incredible to be on the team and to have that honor and responsibility. So few guys get to go. So many people want these spots. There is a big responsibility that comes with it.”
The Americans will play its first game in the preliminary round in Beijing on March 5 against rival Canada.
“They want to win, we got the better of them of late,” Farmer said. “That’s only made them hungrier and want to win even more.”
