Daniel Romanchuk

Started: He took up the sport at age five at the Bennett Blazers club in Baltimore, MD, United States of America. He began competing in marathons at age 14. (Athlete, 17 Jul 2017; nyrr.org, 25 Feb 2016) Reason: His mother got him involved in the sport. (Athlete, 17 Jul 2017) Milestones: In 2019, at age 20, he became the youngest winner of the wheelchair race in the Boston Marathon in the United States of America. (baa.org, 16 Apr 2019; paralympic.org, 16 Apr 2019) In 2018 he became the first US male wheelchair racer to win the New York Marathon in the United States of America. He was also the youngest male wheelchair athlete from any nation to have claimed victory in the race. (nyrr.org, 04 Nov 2018; paralympic.org, 07 Dec 2018) Awards: In 2015 he was named a US Paralympics Track and Field High School All-American for nine events [100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 5000m, discus, javelin, shot put]. (fredericknewspost.com, 08 Sep 2015) Additional Info: RACE ORGANISER In 2020, together with his mother Kim, he organised the Virtual Roller Marathon event in honour of the postponed 2020 Boston Marathon in the United States of America, allowing participants to race on a coordinated online platform. "It was a very unique but wonderful morning. To be able to see everyone come together and push like this, it's amazing. Another great thing about this is that it wasn't specific to those who had signed up for Boston. Anyone could join. I think it was a great opportunity for people to get to know each other. It really did feel like a marathon morning. You're getting up, making breakfast, just going through that routine of a race morning." (teamusa.org, 20 Apr 2020) MENTOR He has acted as a mentor for young Para athletes. In 2020 he took part in a series of webinars covering care and maintenance of wheelchair racing equipment. "I remember getting started in the sport and being terrified to even pump up my tyres because I didn't know how everything worked. So we hope to help the young generation get into this sport and enjoy it." (CBS Boston YouTube channel, 13 Sep 2020; Facebook page, 03 Jun 2020) FURTHER EDUCATION He has studied remotely for a degree in computer-aided design with Howard Community College in Columbia, MD, United States of America. (howardcc.edu, 01 Oct 2021)

Sporting Relatives: His mother Kim Romanchuk played college basketball at Oakland University in Michigan, United States of America. (abcnews.go.com, 15 Apr 2019)