Springfield, Mass. – March 5, 2026 – Mike Anderson (Cromwell, Conn.), an integrative studies major and junior on the Springfield College men's track and field team was recently selected to take part in Team USA Paralympic training camp in Chula Vista, California. Anderson spent three days in California with Team USA in hopes of earning a spot to compete as part of the 2028 games slated to take place in Los Angeles that summer.

What was your experience like out in California for Paralympic Camp?
My experience was amazing. Words can't describe the feeling I had. To see all the work I've put into a sport I have been doing for literally half my life pay off and get noticed was so rewarding. The good days, the bad days, the long days pushing myself past limits. To show that work at the camp was a feeling that words could not describe. Meeting some of the people I did while there was astonishing, hearing their stories and the journeys they took was eye opening. Some of their stories enlightened me to different paths I might be able to take in the future, ones that a kid would dream of.
 
Can you tell us more about your story about how you got selected to go?

My story started in high school when my coach asked me to do hurdles. My freshman year he asked me and I said no out of fear of failing because of my eyesight. He then asked me again my junior year. I then said yes thinking of how I can show people the things that seem impossible aren't. Towards the end of my sophomore year at Springfield, Coach Miller and Coach Shoffner asked me if I had thought about the Paralympics. At the time I didn't. Later that summer I did a little research and found out that I qualified for it and have already run a qualifying time for my division, T13.  I then got in contact with someone from Paralympics with the help of my mom and Michelle Lee Scecina and quickly became a licensed Para athlete. Then the Paralympic committee invited me out to a three day all-inclusive camp in the first week of December.

What did it mean to you to represent yourself and Springfield College at the camp? 

To be able to represent not only myself but also my school was such a great feeling. I felt the pride and honor of being a student-athlete at Springfield College. I could feel my teammates pushing me and cheering me on just like they would at a normal practice. To put it simply it means the world to me.
 
What was the most challenging thing you did either while at the camp or leading up to the camp?

The most challenging thing I did leading up to the camp was the years of dedication to the sport. Pushing through the hard days, long days, shoveling out lanes during winter breaks, finishing the grueling workouts. However, the hardest thing I did at the camp was to fight the jet lag I had and still perform at my highest level.
 
What are your ultimate goals both here at Springfield and moving forward towards the Paralympic Games?

My goal at Springfield College is to inspire people to do that hard thing, the thing that seems impossible – its not impossible. My goal for the track and field team is to set a standard of effort and team camaraderie. As for my goal in the Paralympic Games, I of course want to make the USATF team and win gold, however, my true long term goal is to bring hurdles to the games for me and other physically able divisions. 

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