Photos by Jamie Handy
They are either set for you by others, orbryou create them for yourself. Fortunatelybrfor his teammates and coaches, neitherbrscenario applies to Christopher Tracht, a student at Carroll Middle School. He’s yourbrtypical 14-year-old boy with favorite classesbr(Texas or U.S. history), a favorite place to hangbrout (the outdoors), and favorite sports (it’s a toss-brup between cycling and running).
But what’s not typical is his determination andbrgrit. He allows nothing to get in the way of hisbrOlympic-sized aspirations. Not even the fact thatbrhe became an amputee before his first birthday.
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Christopher was born with fibular hemimelia, abrbirth defect in which his left leg was missing thebrfibular bone, which in turn caused a foot defor-brmity. His dad, Scott, remembers those first weeksbrof Christopher’s life. “My wife and I met with thebrpediatrician just a few hours after Christopherbrwas born, and they immediately recommendedbrTexas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children inbrDallas,” he recalls.br
It was the orthopaedic surgeons at Scottish RitebrHospital, one of the nation’s leading pediatricbrcenters for the treatment of orthopaedic condi-brtions, who recommended a Symes Amputation,brwhich is the foot only. However, his left leg isbrabout five inches shorter than his right, so thebrprosthesis Christopher would be fitted with fourbrto six weeks after the amputation would be forbrthe lower left leg below the knee.
br br brBut, says Scott, although this was a significantbrsetback for someone at such an early age, hav-bring the prosthesis never slowed his son down.br“He was walking by the time he was 13 monthsbrold,” Scott says. “And the rest is history.”
Since age three, Christopher has been an activebrathlete, and according to his dad, if you ever sawbrhis son compete, you’d have no idea that he has abrprosthesis. For Chris, it’s never been a matter ofbrsettling for a sport that fits his limitations. Instead, it’sbrmore about reaching beyond them.
br br br “There’s never really been a time when I thoughtbrI couldn’t do anything that other kids could,” Chris-brtopher says. He skis, hunts, plays baseball, runs andbrparticipates in many other sports. The prosthesis hasbrnever inhibited his athletic desires or abilities.
And while Christopher knows no limitations to whatbrhe can try to accomplish, it’s not always that simplebrfor his coaches. Joe Armato, who is also a family friend,brhas coached Christopher on a select baseball team, thebrPanthers, for the last three years. He recalls the firstbrtime he met Christopher at tryouts.br
“At the time, I had no idea he was an amputee,” Armatobrremembers. “When he came over to me I noticed hebrwas wearing a t-shirt with the word ‘orthopaedic’ onbrit. Since we live in an area where a lot of orthopaedicbrsurgeons reside, I asked Chris if his dad was a doctor.”br
Armato was not expecting Christopher to respond:br“No, I have a prosthetic leg.”br
“Now, it would go through the mind of any coach of abrhigher-level select team that they can’t have a kid onbrtheir team with a disability who wouldn’t be able tobrperform,” Armato admits. “However, after watchingbrChris play, it was almost as if I didn’t even know he hadbra prosthesis.”
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MEDICAL STRIDES
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Going to Texas Scottish Rite every three months orbrso for adjustments to his current prosthesis is justbranother part of Christopher’s story. Steve Rondebrhas been Christopher’s prosthetist since 200
br br br“Technology has changed over the years, and as abrresult, so have prosthetics. Not only does Chris visitbrthe hospital for new fittings and tunings as he ages,brhe is also able to keep up with the latest strides in thebrfield,” says Ronde, a certified and licensed prosthetistbrand orthotist at Texas Scottish Rite.br
The older he gets, the more school Christopher misses. And if it were not for his understanding teachers,brhe says, it may be even more difficult. “I get frustratedbrsometimes because it’s tough going back and forth tobrthe hospital,” Christopher says. “But it’s just a partbrof my life, and I’ve gotten used to it. Plus, we get tobrgo out for breakfast on hospital days, which makes itbrnot so bad.”br
Ronde remembers that in the beginning Christopherbrwas fitted with a relatively basic prosthesis,
but itbrdidn’t keep him from his life of sports. Now, there arebrmore high-tech prosthetics for running that allowbrhim to compete at the highest level.br
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“Chris is definitely one of my more active patients,brand I’ve been here 30 years,” Ronde says. “He is verybrenthusiastic about running and playing sports. He’sbrreally a natural. I have no doubt we will see him at thebrParalympics one day.”
br br brCoinciding with the Olympics, the Paralympics offer sport opportunities for athletes with a primary impairment such as abrlimb deficiency. Christopher’s below-the-knee amputation fallsbrunder this qualifying category. But he must jump a few hurdles to make it to the international stage of competition.
For the past five years, Christopher has participated in the nationally recognized UCO Endeavor Games, a qualifier for the Paralympics.brPresented by the University of Central Oklahoma, the annual eventbrallows athletes with physical disabilities to compete in a multi-sportbrevent.br
“They have everything at the Endeavor Games,” Christopher says. “I’vebrtried most every sport at the event, but track and cycling are my favor-brites. I compete in the 20K cycling event each year.”br
Christopher has won numerous medals at the games, including, mostbrnotably, a gold medal for the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dash, and thebrlong jump.br
In order to compete in running events, Christopher needs a runningbrblade, which is a special prosthesis made just for running. “The Chal-brlenged Athletes Foundation in San Diego has opened up many oppor-brtunities for Chris,” his dad says. “It was through this organization thatbrChris was able to get a running blade.”br
Travis Ricks, Sr. Programs Manager & Athlete Relations for the Challenged Athletes Foundation, has worked with Christopher and hisbrfamily over the past few years to help him obtain grants for tuningbrprosthetics, as well as fund travel to events such as the San DiegobrTriathlon Challenge.br
“I see a talent in Christopher that isn’t in most kids his age,” Ricks says.br“He is fiercely competitive, but in such a way that makes you want tobrsee him succeed. He is an athlete through and through.”br
brIt is through organizations such as the Challenged Athletes Foundation and Texas Scottish Rite Hospital that Christopher has beenbrinvited to do so many incredible things, Scott says. In 2012, Christopher had the opportunity to participate in the Dallas Marathon, butbrnot as a runner... yet.
br br brEach year, one patient of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Childrenbrserves as the Junior Race Director for the marathon. This individualbrrepresents thousands of children treated at the hospital. Chris wasbrchosen as the 2012 Junior Race Director, and remembers the experi-brence fondly.br
“I was featured on ‘Good Morning Texas’ and spoke to many peoplebrabout the event,” he says. “But the best part was starting the race. I’vebrrun a lot of 5Ks, and I hope to run, maybe, a half marathon one day.”br
brRunning, well, runs in the family. His mom, Niki, has always been anbravid runner and actually ran the half marathon at Christopher’s RacebrDirector debut in 2012. His sister Cate, who is a sophomore at CarrollbrSenior High School, runs Cross Country and track. It is through hisbrinvolvement in Cross Country and track at Carroll Middle School thatbrhe continues to hone his skills. And the positive reinforcement hebrreceives from coaches and his peers helps him to excel.
br br brZach Sellers, who has coached Christopher in Cross Country and track for a littlebrmore than two years, has accolades to share about Christopher’s performancebrboth on and off the track. “Chris makes the most of his opportunities in anybrsituation he’s in,” Sellers says. “Even with the hand he has been dealt, he stillbrhas a great outlook on life and a positive attitude both in sports and in school.brKids look to him as a leader and someone they can learn from. He is a guy otherbrteammates and students emulate, both in the classroom and on the field.”br
His baseball coach agrees. “Chris is one of the leaders on the team because hebrinspires,” Armato says. “The other players, both on his team and opposingbrteams, are able to see what he has been able to accomplish with what he’s beenbrgiven. People look at him and say, ‘If Chris can do this, I can do this.’ He drivesbrpeople. Chris doesn’t allow his physical limitation to get in the way of his overallbrperformance.”br
Christopher sets a (quiet) example of what an athlete should stand for andbrhow they should compete—with character and sportsmanship. And that’s ex-bractly why we agree with everyone else: You’ll be seeing him at the Paralympics.br
br“But not when I turn 16,” Christopher says. “I will probably wait until the 2020brgames in Tokyo.” After all, he’s got favorite classes to attend.