USA track stars to compete at Disney

Sprinter Blake Leeper, a double-Paralympic medallist in London, will lead an American delegation on the Florida track this weekend. 22 Mar 2013

Blake Leeper won a silver and a bronze in his Paralympic debut at the London 2012 Games.

ⒸGetty Images

By IPC

Of the 14 competing US athletes, all but three are military veterans.

Six members of USA’s athletics squad from the London 2012 Paralympics will compete at this weekend’s Walt Disney World Invitational in Kissimmee, Florida.

Paralympic medal-winning sprinters Blake Leeper and David Prince highlight the field in the event, which will take place at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex.

Leeper, who was recently named to the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) Ones to Watch list for this season, won a silver in the 400m T44 and bronze in the 200m T44 at London 2012.

The double below-the-knee amputee made history last summer by equalling the 100m T43 world record of 10.91.

In Florida, he will compete in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay events.

Prince finished third in the 400m T44 event at London 2012, just six years after joining the US Paralympics Track and Field team after leaving his old lifestyle of a drug dealer and dropout. He will compete in the same three events this weekend as Leeper.

Leading field events in Florida will be seated thrower Scot Severn, who at the London Games took bronze in shot put F53. He will compete in the shot put and discus events. Paralympian Jarryd Wallace, as well as US Army veteran Rob Brown, will join Prince and Leeper in the 4x100m men’s relay.

Of the 14 competing US athletes, all but three are military veterans.

The competition kicks off at 10:00 EST on Friday (22 March) and will run through Saturday.