VERFUERTH Kaitlyn

United States of America
Canoe Sprint
12 Aug 1985
36
Female
KL2,VL2
PORT WASHINGTON, WI
 
United States of America
GILBERT, AZ
 
United States of America

Events and Medals

Discipline Event Rank Medal
CSP Canoe Sprint Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL2 13
Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2 9

Schedule

Change
Start Time Location Event Status
Sea Forest Waterway
Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2 Heat 2
#4
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL2 Heat 1
#11
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2 Semi-final 2
#22
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL2 Semi-final 2
#37
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL2 Final B
#44
Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

:

CANOE SPRINT
RankEventYearLocationResult
World Championships
8Va'a Single 200m - VL22019Szeged, HUN1:09.04
15Kayak Single 200m - KL22019Szeged, HUN1:05.70

WHEELCHAIR TENNIS
RankEventYearLocation
Paralympic Games
4Doubles2008Beijing, CHN
5Doubles2016Rio de Janeiro, BRA
5Doubles2004Athens, GRE
9Singles2008Beijing, CHN
9Singles2004Athens, GRE
17Singles2016Rio de Janeiro, BRA
:
Verf (Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)
:
Spending time with her dogs. (Instagram profile, 28 Jul 2021)
:
Athlete, Coach
:
Mt. San Antonio College, Walnut, CA, USA
:
Partner Greg Guerin
:
English
:
Deb Smith [national]
:
She competed in wheelchair tennis at the 2004, 2008 and 2016 Paralympic Games, and has also represented the United States of America in wheelchair basketball. (eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021; Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)
:
She began Para canoe sprint in 2017 in Florida, United States of America, and took up the sport competitively in 2018. She had previously competed in wheelchair tennis at the Paralympic Games in 2004, 2008 and 2016, but retired from the sport after the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. (teamusa.org, 15 Jul 2021; eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021)
:
After meeting US Para canoe coach Deb Smith during the opening ceremony at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, she decided to give the sport a try. "I didn't know what I was getting into. I also didn't expect to fall in love with it. That day I left for Florida I knew that I would come back and want to compete. I came back and I was in love with competing again. I had a new goal, a new dream and a new desire." (teamusa.org, 15 Jul 2021)
:
To compete at the 2020 and 2024 Paralympic Games. (eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021)
:
US wheelchair tennis player Randy Snow. (Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)
:
Partner Greg Guerin. (teamusa.org, 15 Jul 2021)
:
"Sometimes life is about risking everything for a dream no one can see but you." (Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)

General Interest

Classification
KL2, VL2 (ICF, 05 Aug 2021)

Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries (Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (Athlete, 03 Aug 2016)

Impairment Details
She was involved in a car accident at age seven. She sustained an incomplete L2 spinal cord injury, which resulted in paraplegia. (eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021; usparalympics.org, 26 Oct 2011)

General
TOKYO PLACE
She took up Para canoe sprint in 2017 after retiring from wheelchair tennis. She aimed to compete in the sport at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, and skipped the 2021 World Cup event in Szeged, Hungary, which also awarded quota places for the rescheduled 2020 Games in Tokyo. After two paddlers were disqualified from the event, the time she set at the 2019 ACA Sprint and Para National Team Trials in Oklahoma City, OK, United States of America, was next in line for a quota place for the 2020 Games. "I am brand new to this sport. I really just started competing in 2018 and to be honest, I am really lucky to be going. I swear if you asked me in February [2021], I would've been like, 'I don't care, I am just focused on Paris'." (eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She works as a wheelchair tennis coach with young children at Ability 360 in Phoenix, AZ, United States of America. (eu.azcentral.com, 01 May 2021)

FURTHER EDUCATION
Alongside her associates degree in language arts communication from Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA, United States of America, she has also studied therapeutic recreation at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri, and psychology at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. (Facebook profile, 03 Aug 2021; teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2016)

Legend
:
Gold Medal Event
:
Silver Medal Event
:
Bronze Medal Event
Content 1 (removed through CDN)
Content 2 (removed through CDN).
Timing and scoring provided by OMEGA. Results powered by Atos