Garfield rising junior Conner Hunt had already proven himself at the state level as a tough competitor in the seated track events but now has made his mark at the national level. Hunt won the 100-meter seated dash at the Move United Hartford Nationals in Alabama by setting a national record of 15.71 seconds and finished as the runner-up the 400 and 800-meter seated dashes in the T54-U17 category on July 14.
“That is a huge improvement for me,” Hunt told The Weekly Villager on July 22. “The old national record was 15.95 seconds and I broke that, setting it at 15.71 seconds and that was a huge improvement and I was really happy about that, to get that low of a time.”
Hunt was close to the national record in the 400-meter seated dash as well, clocking a time of 56.84 seconds, only 0.74 off of the national record.
It marked the first time that Hunt was selected to represent Ohio at the MUHN, and earned a berth based on the times he registered during his sophomore year of outdoor track. He had previously been eligible to compete last summer but because he received an invitation on such short notice, his national debut had to wait.
As accustomed as he may have been to competing on a big stage from his time at the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II state meet, Hunt acknowledged that he faced a different group of competitors at the MUHN.
“For me, going there and competing against a whole bunch of other athletes and competing against athletes with the same disabilities, there is a lot more competition there and more competition helped me improve my times and get up to speed and see what I have to really offer,” he noted.
It was a much bigger field than the usual one he competed against in high school track, as most of the seated athletes he faced would not have been assigned to his specific category in the MUHN.
“Normally, I am used to going to the state meet and meeting a bunch of different people but at nationals, I went there and saw some people from Ohio and saw a whole lot of other people which was nice,” he said.
Hunt competed in a preliminary to advance to the 100-meter seated dash finals and finished only 0.02 seconds off of the national record. He persevered in the finals to not only win the race but also put his name in the record books.
“There was one kid right behind me, I feel he helped push me more than I am used to,” he said. “When it came to the finals, he was in the same heat right next to me so I feel like him being there helped me push even more to get to the end.”
For Hunt, it is another feather in a cap filled with a long list of achievements since beginning his seated track career in junior high. Before he reached junior high, the only other sport Hunt participated in was basketball sponsored by the National Wheelchair Basketball Association, open to all kids who have disabilities that puts them in a wheelchair or qualifies them for a wheelchair.
In his first two years of high school, Hunt has already collected six gold medals by competing at the OHSAA Division II state meet. After a captivating performance at the MUHN, Hunt has even more motivation to finish strong on the back half of his high school career.
While Hunt is open to returning to the MUHN next year, he will also focus on narrowing down his collegiate choices by taking some visits.
Hunt’s ultimate goal is to qualify for a spot on Team USA Paralympic Team for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. His recent performance at the MUHN has only strengthened his belief he can achieve that goal.
“I know that there are kids that can compete with me and stay up to speed with me and help me with my goal of getting onto Team USA,” he said.
Portage County will be represented in this year’s 2024 Paris Paralympic by Ravenna Southeast graduate Jenna Fesemyer, and Hunt hopes to follow in her footsteps for the next time the Summer Olympics rolls around.
