“The predominant thing I’ve been told is about all my restrictions and limitations,” Jim Knaub, an Olympic pole vaulter turned professional wheelchair marathoner, told Bob Babbitt back in 1986. “Never tell a challenged individual what they can’t do. They will prove you wrong. It is my mission to prove to myself and others everything we can do.”
That conversation, held in Knaub’s living room, changed Babbitt’s perspective forever. One of the earliest Ironman athletes, having raced in Oahu in 1980, Babbitt has always believed that sport creates health, identity, and community. But Knaub was the first of many athletes who showed him not only the transformative role of sport following disability, but also how powerfully people can rise when given access, support, and a chance to move again.
Inspired by stories like Jim’s, Babbitt co-founded the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) over 30 years ago with a singular mission: to remove barriers for challenged athletes, open doors, and help people reclaim their lives through sport.
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Sport Isn’t a Luxury – It’s a Lifeline
“It’s remarkable to me that, as a society, we’ll prescribe a lifelong supply of opioids for pain, but we won’t fund adaptive equipment for sport – because sport is seen as a ‘luxury’ rather than a foundation for physical and mental health,” Babbitt said. “When you see the smile on someone’s face when they’re active again, or the joy of a parent finally being able to get out with their kids instead of watching from the sidelines, it becomes crystal clear: sport truly gives people their life back.”
Babbitt has also witnessed, firsthand, what people will endure for the chance to move again. “I watched athletes complete the Kona Ironman with old-style prosthetics that had to be emptied of sweat again and again during the race,” he shared. Those moments stayed with him – not just as feats of endurance, but as reminders of the athletes whose determination helped normalize, expand, and advocate for access to adaptive sport.
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And access is key. “People with disabilities often face employment barriers,” Babbitt explained. “So paying for adaptive equipment on their own is simply not feasible.” A racing chair can cost more than a used car. A running blade can cost as much as a high-end bike. Without support, these options remain out of reach for many.
CAF, a registered charity supporting adaptive athletes across 105 different sports, exists to change that. To date, it has raised over $191 million and awarded more than 52,000 grants worldwide. Just last week, Babbitt returned from a fundraising event he hosted in New York – an evening that generated $2.5 million for the cause he has dedicated his life to advancing.
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Jamie Whitmore’s Story
Jamie Whitmore was one of the greatest XTERRA athletes of all time, amassing 37 titles, including a world championship. But in 2008, she was diagnosed with spindle cell sarcoma, a rare cancer that required surgery and left her left leg paralyzed.
Whitmore has often said she was simply grateful to be alive after her diagnosis. But Babbitt remembers knowing, long before she voiced it, that she would eventually need sport again, not just for fitness, but to reconnect with the life and identity she had built as an athlete.
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“We [CAF] often meet people during the worst moments of their lives, in the middle of their trauma,” Babbitt said. “But that doesn’t mean their life is over. With Jamie, I remember calling her husband and saying, ‘I know Jamie. She’s going to need sport. When she’s ready, have her give me a call.’”
CAF helped Whitmore access the adaptive equipment she needed to pursue paracycling. And in Jamie’s words: “Cycling [became] the one sport [that didn’t] make me feel like I [had] a disability.”
True to the athlete she is, Whitmore not only returned to sport – she rose to the top of it. She went on to qualify for the Rio Paralympics, where she captured a gold medal.
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Reclaiming Joy and Community Through Sport
“We often think of these moments in life as endings, but they can also be beginnings,” Babbitt said. He acknowledged that disability can come with grief, frustration, and real loss, but he also sees something larger in the athletes he works with. Their stories show that community, joy, and purpose can return – and sometimes grow in ways no one expected.
Representation and community are part of that transformation. When challenged athletes meet others who move like them, compete like them, or live with the same obstacles, possibility expands. “We recently hosted an event in San Diego for challenged kids,” Babbitt said. “It’s powerful to watch them meet each other, to feel that sense of belonging, to understand they’re not alone on their journey.” Some of the kids begin to adopt what he calls a “superhero mindset,” becoming proud of their prosthetics, proud of how they move, and proud of the identities sport helps them build.
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Those moments, he added, are at the heart of CAF’s mission: creating spaces where athletes see themselves not through limitation, but through potential.
Babbitt sees that same spirit in aging athletes. “I’m a huge fan of aquabike events being added to triathlon weekends,” he shared. “As people age, running becomes the hardest part to keep doing, but aquabikes give you a finish line, a medal, and a community that celebrates you.” For him, it’s another reminder that sport can evolve with people across their lifespan, offering new ways to stay connected, confident, and in motion.
Supporting The Mission
“If I’m honest, I often find the challenged-athlete stories the most inspiring,” Babbitt said in closing. “And I love seeing them on the front of a magazine.” His admiration is rooted in the kind of people these athletes become on the other side of adversity – not defined by their challenges, but elevated by their resilience, generosity, leadership, and the communities they help create.
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Triathlon Magazine is proud to share one challenged-athlete feature each month. If you feel moved to support this work – to help reconnect athletes with movement, community, and the finish lines that can change lives – we invite you to learn more or donate here: www.challengedathletes.org.
The post How Bob Babbitt and the Challenged Athletes Foundation Are Empowering Athletes to Live the True Meaning of “Anything Is Possible” appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.