On this final episode of our podcast, Olympic Dreams: San Diego to Tokyo, we chat with Paralympic long jumper Lex Gillette who lost his sight at an early age but refused to let it hold him back.
He is one of the best long jumpers in the world.
He is blind.
Listen to Episode 10:
Get top local stories in San Diego delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC San Diego's News Headlines newsletter.
Gillette, who recently qualified for his fifth Paralympics, heads to Tokyo in search of gold.
He has four previous Paralympic silver medals and world championships and even a world record, but the Paralympic gold just hasn't worked out... yet.
The Tokyo Paralympics start two weeks after the Tokyo Olympics end and he is ready.
While Gillette's body of work on the track is impressive, it's his attitude off the track which has earned respect from athletes around the globe.
Gillette routinely inspires people around him, both as an athlete and a motivational speaker.
He trademarked the phrase, "No need for sight when you have a vision," and this mantra has followed him everywhere he goes.
Olympics Coverage: San Diego to Tokyo
Listen to more episodes of our Olympic Dreams podcast.
In this episode of Olympic Dreams, Gillette talks about what it was like to be isolated from everyone around him during the COVID-19 pandemic and how he still found a way to train on his own.
Don't miss this week's incredible and inspiring chat with Paralympian Lex Gillette
Listen/Subscribe to NBC 7’s Olympic Dreams: San Diego to Tokyo podcast wherever you enjoy listening to podcasts. On each episode, NBC 7 News Today anchor Steven Luke will sit down with athletes in their prime, each with their sights set on one thing: representing Team USA in Tokyo this summer. How will they achieve their Olympic dreams?
