LEEP Jose

Wheelchair Basketball

Date of Birth: 15 Aug 1978

Age: 43

Gender: Male

Sport Class: 3.0

Birth Country:

Colombia

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Wheelchair Basketball	Men COL Colombia	11

Schedule

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Musashino Forest Sport Plaza	Men's Preliminary Round Group A #14 COL Colombia 56 JPN Japan 63	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Preliminary Round Group A #22 ESP Spain 74 COL Colombia 56	Finished
	Musashino Forest Sport Plaza	Men's Preliminary Round Group A #34 KOR Republic of Korea 66 COL Colombia 54	Finished
	Musashino Forest Sport Plaza	Men's Preliminary Round Group A #37 COL Colombia 38 TUR Turkey 80	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Preliminary Round Group A #46 COL Colombia 52 CAN Canada 63	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Classification Playoff 11/12 #56 COL Colombia 70 ALG Algeria 47	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Rank	Event	Year	Location
Paralympic Games
11	Men	2012	London, GBR
World Championships
10	Men	2014	Incheon, KOR

Occupation:

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, United States

Languages spoken:

English, Spanish

Fundacion Vital Zuzenak [Vitoria-Gasteiz, ESP] since 2019

Sergio Moreno [club]; Ana Cardoso [national], BRA

Position style:

Guard (cpc.org.co, 27 Oct 2020)

National league:

Division de Honor [ESP] (bsr.feddf.es, 01 Aug 2021)

His adoptive parents took him to a sports school for impaired children, where he learned to swim and later how to play wheelchair basketball. (cpc.org.co, 27 Oct 2020)

To compete at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. (laopinion.com, 04 Aug 2021; paralympic.org, 21 Jul 2021)

His adoptive parents and family. (noticiasdealava.eus, 21 Jul 2021; noticiasdealava.eus, 25 May 2021)

"When I go to compete, the first thing I do is fix my chair and make sure that everything is fine, that it works normally. I eat well, I go to the gym to be physically well, and I also watch videos of the opposition to prepare myself as much as possible." (cpc.org.co, 27 Oct 2020)

Philosophy:

"If you have allowed yourself to be overcome by any obstacle in your life, I would advise you to try again, because that is what life is about, getting up, taking strength and coming back with more enthusiasm." (cpc.org.co, 27 Oct 2020)

General Interest

Classification
3.0 (IWBF, 16 Aug 2021)

Type of Impairment
Limb deficiency (elespectator.com, 26 Sep 2014; eltiempo.com, 08 Aug 2013)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (elespectator.com, 26 Sep 2014; eltiempo.com, 08 Aug 2013)

Impairment Details
Both of his legs were amputated at age five as a result of injuries he sustained in a landslide in his hometown of Ocana, Colombia. His parents and six siblings died in the landslide. "That day I remember well. There was a landslide that left me in a very bad way, to say the least. My mum, dad, four sisters, and two brothers passed away instantly. From that moment, my life changed forever." (elespectator.com, 26 Sep 2014; eltiempo.com, 08 Aug 2013)

General
NATIONALITY SWITCH
He originally represented the United States of America in wheelchair basketball at junior level. He began training with the Colombian national team in 2009 and made his debut for Colombia the following year. (cpc.org.co, 27 Oct 2020; paralympic.org, 21 Jul 2021)

ADOPTION AND MOVE TO UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
After losing his family in a landslide at age five, he spent the next four years living in hospital and several orphanages. At age 10 he was adopted by a US couple and moved to the United States of America. He was born 'Jose Buitrago Sanguino' but uses the 'Leep' surname of his adoptive parents. "There [United States of America] everything began to normalise. Things happened very quickly. I remember that I started taking English classes and that I went to school like any child. They introduced me to sport, and thanks to them, I was able to get ahead. I had a family that gave me love and supported me, and today my disability is not a problem, it is an opportunity." (elespectator.com, 26 Sep 2014; eltiempo.com, 08 Aug 2013)

Legend

:: Gold Medal Event
:: Silver Medal Event
:: Bronze Medal Event

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