Aaron ‘Wheelz’ Fotheringham just opened the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in badass style -- with a death-defying, fireworks-accompanied stunt.
The 24-year-old from Las Vegas, adapts his moves from a hybrid of skateboarding and BMX racing, kicked off the 2016 Games with a surprise demonstration of his WCMX wheelchair skills. He pulled the stunt after the president of the International Paralympic Committee, Sir Phillip Craven, gave the official countdown to kick of the Games.
SEE ALSO:Athletes with Down syndrome fight for inclusion at the ParalympicsAppearing in a bright green chair at the top of a six-story high construction, Fotheringham went flying down the giant ramp, with fireworks going off on either side of him, only to launch into a somersault through a large ring. It. Was. Epic.
Go Wheelz.Credit: Getty ImagesThe stadium filled with cheers as the three-hour procession of paralympians, dancing and up-tempo music kicked off.
In an a interview with People Magazineearlier this year, the star of Nitro Circus, a touring extreme sports collective, explained his motivation.
"A lot of people view the wheelchair as being negative, or kind of like a prison, like you always hear people say, ‘confined to a wheelchair,'" Fotheringham, who has Spina Bifida, said. "And for me, I never felt confined to the wheelchair – it always was a great opportunity so if I could say anything to anyone living on a wheelchair, it's all about having a positive attitude and just kind of looking for the bright side of things."
Tweet may have been deleted
He added, "wheelchairs provide just as many opportunities as someone with working legs, it's just you got to get out there and kind of chase it."
Tweet may have been deleted
No doubt many more young people will be inspired at take up the art of "hardcore sitting," as Fotheringham jokingly calls it, after seeing this act of showmanship.
Now that the 11-day games have officially begun, they'll be plenty more where that came from.
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
(责任编辑：時尚)
What brands need to know about virtual realityEA haters started a campaign to stop parents from buying 'Star Wars Battlefront II'Why people are mistakenly tweeting 'RIP Charles Manson'UPS to convert 1,500 diesel trucks to allDid our grandparents have the best beauty advice?Twitter grants everyone access to quality filter for tweet notifications
Twitter introduced two features Thursday in an effort to give users more control on what notificatio
...[详细]Get a stock graphics subscription worth $5K on sale for less than $20
If you're an aspiring graphic artist, a marketing professional, or just someone who feels a deep spi
...[详细]Speedrunning record on 'GoldenEye 007' broken by gamer after 15 years
More than 20 years its release, gamers are still trying to master 。 GoldenEye 007
。on Nintendo 64, wit
...[详细]Amazon submits patent application for self
Amazon has a new idea to ensure delivery safety: a self-destruct drone.On Friday, The Vergereported
...[详细]One of the first Apple computers ever made is currently up for auction.A rare "Celebration" Apple-1
...[详细]Popular teen app Musical.ly sold to Chinese tech giant Bytedance
$1 billion. That was the price tag for what's cool, according to。 Justin Timberlake。Sean Parker's co
...[详细]There's a new religion centered around artificial intelligence and it sounds terrifying
There's a new church for tech-minded folks, and it sounds like something out of a science fiction no
...[详细]Why people are mistakenly tweeting 'RIP Charles Manson'
After the death of Charles Manson, infamous leader of a murderous cult which killed actress Sharon T
...[详细]Olympics official on Rio's green diving pool: 'Chemistry is not an exact science'
The diving pool for the Summer Olympics mysteriously turned green this week in Rio de Janeiro, then
...[详细]Reddit is testing new chat feature to replace private messages
Reddit is about to make one of its biggest changes yet.The site will soon launch a new instant messa
...[详细]Despite IOC ban, Rio crowds get their political messages across
Skeptical 6 year old shades Old St. Nick with a savage letter