Faster, Higher and Stronger, Derek Loccident Plans To Pursue Four Medals at Paris Paralympics

Still a relative newcomer to Para Athletics, the rapid learning curve that multi-event sensation Derek Loccident has shown is the stuff of legends.

The 26-year-old former college football standout showcased his speed, sheer athleticism and a lightning quick progression in technical events, running and jumping to three medals at the Para Athletic World Championships in Kobe, Japan, in mid-May. 

Loccident – whose left foot was severed in a train accident in 2018 at age 20, and competes with a prosthetic as a below knee amputee – won silver medals in the long jump and high jump, while tacking on a bronze in the 100m, all in his T64 classification. 

“Leaving with some hardware from Kobe in some new events that I’ve added, it was definitely a great experience and lets me know that I’m on the right track,” Loccident tells Team USA, no pun intended.

Over five days of competition, Loccident not only claimed three medals, but also attained two PR’s and set two championship records, a dream week no doubt.

“It was a great world championships to have, especially the timing before the (Paralympic) Games,” said the Oklahoma athlete.

Loccident points out that he only began running, jumping and throwing as an adaptive athlete about a year-and-a-half ago, having swiftly transitioned from college football.

His recent medal haul in Japan was not a total surprise. Loccident audaciously soared to a long jump T64 silver medal at the previous Para Athletics World Championships in Paris, in 2023, making a stellar international debut.

The versatile adaptive athlete informs that he uses four distinct and customized prosthetic blades: one for warming up that he formerly played football on, one for sprints, and one each – both highly specialized and crafted – for high jump and long jump.

“I’m fresh on the scene, but as I move along there will be a lot more information provided, allowing these companies to open doors on how they approach making new blades for long jump, high jump, sprints and even the longer distances,” Loccident surmises.

Mounting his quick ascent towards the top of Para Athletics, Loccident initially envisioned pursuing five medals at the Paralympic Games Paris 2024. However, the mulit-talented competitor had to slighlty revise his gameplan considering a complex schedule and conflicting events. He still aspires to compete in four events this summer. 

“The guaranteed events are high jump and long jump,” Loccident informs.

He also reveals that he hopes to round out the jam-packed program with potential 100m and/or 200m sprints, perhaps a relay, and quite possibly the javelin. It all remains a fluid situation.

“There will definitely be a discussion held before the Games even start to see what I’ll be allowed to do or not allowed to do,” Loccident said, referring to consultation with various officials. “I’m definitely going to make an effort to hit all of my core events.” 

Loccident’s ambitions are high, just like the bars he routinely leaps over. The six-foot, two-inch athlete will certainly be striving to blend a unique cocktail of events, never before concocted at the Paralympic Games.

American Bart Dodson astonishingly won eight Para Athletics gold medals at the Paralympic Games Barcelona 1992. The dominant wheelchair racer’s remarkable feat still stands as the U.S. Paralympics record. However, unlike the mixed bag that Loccident will attempt, Dodson’s titles all came in races.

Loccident says that unlike at the 2023 world championships, he hopes to absorb the “full totale of what’s to come” in Paris, at his first Paralympics experience. Another outstanding long jump at the Stade de France will simply make the smile on his face that much wider.

“I want to compete at my fullest, go in healthy, primed and ready,” Loccident says. “For me, the most joy would be walking out with a gold medal in long jump. That’s at the top of my list.

“Outside of competing, I’m looking forward to enjoying my teammates’ presence and spending some quality time together there.

“Being able to do this as a U.S. track and field Paralympian and representing the country is almost a dream come true – being able to live this life at this time right now.”

Loccident’s road to Paris runs through the 2024 U.S. Paralympic Track & Field Trials in Miramar, Florida, July 18-21. The meet will help to shape his final Paralympic program.

“Training has been going great, I’m feeling rejuvenated, primed and ready to go, especially after some rest,” said Loccident, who primarily trains at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center near San Diego, California.

At a recent competition in Chula Vista, Loccident launched eight meters in the long jump, becoming just the third Paraympic athlete to break the eight-meter barrier.

“Being able to carve my name into history by jumping over eight meters was extremely important – it lets me know that I’m getting closer to being ready for the Games,” Loccident said.

The mark was wind-aided, so it wasn’t recorded as an official record, however Loccident still reigns as the T64 American record holder at 7.82m/25’8”. 

Equally impressive, Loccident’s high jump personal best is 2.04m/6’8¼”, a bar he surpassed at the recent world championships in Japan. Competing is a mixed class event, the Oklahoma native set a world championship record to win silver.

He etched his name in the record books as the first T64 high jumper to clear two meters at a world championships. Yet even more impressive, it was Loccident’s first international high jump competition.

Loccident’s natural athleticism and college football exploits as a linebacker at NCAA Division II Central Oklahoma have been catalysts to his adaptive athletics success. But Loccident insists that his fast track to stardom hasn’t been as easy as he makes it look.

“It’s definitely been challenging, but I’ve been able to adapt quickly because of my football background and because I was able to jump into football right after my accident,” Loccident says, about the transition between sports.

“Being able to get through practice sessions on a blade itself is much different than being on a running foot every day, but I have been able to grasp track and field a little easier.

“Still, there is the constant daily task of trying to figure out ways to get better as track is a more technical sport, causing you to invest more time working on proper angles and finding new ways to maneuver,” he said.