CLIFFORD Jaryd

Classification
T12, F12 (IPC, 17 Feb 2021)

Type of Impairment
Vision impairment (paralympic.org, 29 Oct 2015)

Impairment Details
He began to lose his eyesight progressively during primary school due to juvenile macular degeneration. He was classified as legally blind at age 12. (abc.net.au, 04 Sep 2016; insightvision.org.au, 25 Jun 2013)

Guide
Tim Logan (tempojournal.com, 19 Aug 2020)

General
TOKYO STRATEGY
He has planned to win gold medals in both the 1500m and 5000m races at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. However he says that the longer the race, the worse his vision deteriorates as fatigue takes hold. "In a pack situation, it's a lot easier for me to become disorientated and panic and under the stresses of fatigue. I adapt so many strategies to work out how to race. I did my first guided 5000m on the track before [the 2018 World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland] and when I do that, I don't have to worry about running into things, I don't have to stress about things most runners take for granted. It's definitely the future for me so then I can rest my eyes and I don't get the extra fatigue." (abc.net.au, 30 Jul 2019; iaaf.org, 10 Jul 2018)

CANBERRA LOCKDOWN
In 2020 he trained in Canberra, ACT, Australia during much of the COVID-19 pandemic away from his home in Melbourne, Victoria. "I got caught out a little. I managed to secure an exemption to travel to Canberra during the early stages of stage four restrictions in Melbourne. To be able to train with my squad and coach has been crucial to my performances this year and leading into the Paralympic Games [2020 Games in Tokyo]. Nevertheless, leaving home at a time when my community was doing it tough felt uncomfortable. Not knowing when I would be able to see my family and girlfriend made the decision to leave even tougher. A gold medal in Tokyo would be for them, my community, and the people that have been there on the journey. When I go for a run, that's what I'm thinking about." (runnerstribe.com, 05 Jan 2021)

ABLE-BODIED COMPETITION
He competed in able-bodied 1500m race at the 2018 World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland. "I just live life by the day. If my vision gets worse in the future, so be it, but I'm a runner so I'm going to put myself in every race I can physically do. When I'm on the start line, yeah I'm a Paralympian, but at the end of the day we're all runners and I was fighting as hard as everyone." He met New Zealander able-bodied runner Samuel Tanner at the championships who raced against him but also assisted him to navigate safe passage on the track. "It's bloody scary but if you're scared of falling over, then you're never going to get the best out of yourself. You've really just got to go hard at it and try and survive. I got through it without falling and I'm stoked about that. Tanner was such a great help." (iaaf.org, 10 Jul 2018)

WRITER
He writes articles on athletics for the Runner's Tribe website. "I just love meeting people and love getting their stories out there. I don't think I could just run and that was it." (Little Athletics Victoria YouTube channel, 10 Jun 2019; runnerstribe.com, 31 May 2019)