Photo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images for Team USA
Paralympian Brody Roybal credits his role on Team USA’s sled hockey squad for helping him grow into the person he is today.
The 23-year-old athlete spoke with PEOPLE about his sports career and preparing to compete in the Beijing Winter Paralympics, whichbegin this Friday. Roybal opened up about his time on the ice and what he’s learned in the eight years since joining the U.S. national sled hockey team at age 15.
“We had such a great team, a great group of guys, and role models and people I could look to for advice,” he told PEOPLE last fall about first joining the team. “And I am glad that I could now be one of those guys that people look to.”
Roybal continued, “I’ve grown from a kid into an adult. And it’s been cool, and they’ve really shaped who I am and my life. And I hope that I’ve influenced their lives as well. Because we really are just a big family. I couldn’t imagine doing it with anyone else other than those guys.”
Tom Pennington/Getty Images for Team USA
While Roybal acknowledged it was “weird” to compete at such a young age, he said he was thankful to have teammate Declan Farmer, who also joined the U.S. national sled hockey team at age 15.
“It was nice having each other because it can be tough, a 15-year-old interacting with a 30-year-old, just, [the] communication level’s difficult because our lives are so different,” he shared. “I’m dealing with, ‘Oh my God, this guy kissed my ex-girlfriend in high school,’ or whatever it is. And they’re like, ‘I have two children.'”
Roybal told PEOPLE he “never really thought [it] would come to that point” of winning back-to-back gold. He said it was a strange experience to return to the normal life of a teenager after his first win in 2014.
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By his second win in 2018, Roybal told PEOPLE he “felt a lot more deserving of my spot on the team,” explaining, “I had been there before. So it really wasn’t anything new, and I felt like I could really enjoy that one a lot more.”
As for this year’s games, Roybal says he’s part of “a great team, and we hold each other accountable.”
“We’re going to keep working hard, and keep trying to win as many gold medals as we possibly can,” he said.
To learn more about all the Paralympic hopefuls, visitTeamUSA.org, and watch the Winter Paralympics on NBC starting March 4.
source: people.com
