MINNEAPOLIS, Minn — Former Cheney Blackhawk Isaiah Rigo is one of 61 athletes selected to represent the United States at the Paralympic Games this August in Tokyo, Japan. Rigo is one of three athletes from the Spokane area who was selected to the team after recently completing three days of trials.
The other two are Hannah Dederick of Liberty Lake and Susannah Scaroni of Tekoa.
Rigo is the first Cheney track and field athlete to compete in an Olympic Games. He is the second Cheney athlete ever to compete at an Olympics — with Launi Meile winning a gold medal in the 50-meter rifle/three position event in Barcelona, Spain in 1992.
Rigo was a four-time 2A state champion in wheelchair cross country competition, 2015-2018, and helped the Blackhawks track and field team win a combined state title in 2018. He has been competing at the University of Illinois, and qualified for Tokyo in the sprints, middle distance and distance events.
“He is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete and I am excited to see how he does on the world stage,” Cheney High School cross country and track and field head coach Derek Slaughter said.
Rigo’s competed in the World Championships in 2019, finishing fifth in the 400-meter and 1,500-meter races. He also competed in 2015 and 2013, where at age 14 he was the youngest member of Team USA in the IPC World Championships.
He began parasports in 2007, joining Parasport Spokane. He was part of the Parasport Spokane St. Luke’s Tornadoes wheelchair basketball team that won a national title in 2012.
The Tokyo Games begin Aug. 24 and conclude Sept. 5.
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].
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