Deaf kayaker Aaron Small to compete in Paris Olympics
There is a deaf/hard of hearing U.S. Olympian that is currently in Paris as a part of the U.S. canoe sprint team. His name is Aaron Small from Seattle.
We at “Daily Moth” mentioned the names of several deaf/hard of hearing athletes currently in the Paris Olympics but we missed him. He is a sprint kayaker.
Small posted on his Instagram a video in ASL that he is hard of hearing and has hearing aids. He said his first day of competition is Tuesday, August 6. He will be in the K2 500m heats (competing with a partner) and if they qualify, play in the quarterfinals.
He will compete again on Wednesday, August 7th in the K1 1000m heats (competing alone) and also possibly in the quarterfinals if he qualifies.
You can follow him on Instagram @small.aaron. Good luck to him on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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Today.com and the Seattle Times did stories on Small. Both are linked in the description. They explained that Small was diagnosed with hearing loss in both ears when he was 4. He got hearing aids and said he did feel embarrassed and faced bullying because of them.
When Small turned 11, he started sprint kayaking and fell in love with it and made many friends that way.
Small graduated from the University of Washington in June with a degree in oceanography and minored in ASL.
His current kayaking partner is Jonas Ecker and I read that they have been training together in the Seattle area for about six years. Again, good luck to Aaron Small and Jonas Ecker.
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/small.aaron/
Articles:
https://www.today.com/health/news/aaron-small-paris-olympics-hearing-loss-rcna163644