AUSTIN, Texas — A Central Texas teen representing Team USA at the 2024 Paralympics is settling in nicely.
On Thursday, 15-year-old Jordan White scored 10 points four times in the second half of his first match en route to scoring a personal best 580 points.
White, who is from Cedar Park, hasn't competed in archery for very long. And while the score probably wasn't what he wanted, he managed to settle down as the competition went on.
"First round was a huge struggle," White said, according to USA Archery. "I felt a lot of pressure ... I was able to turn it around for that second round."
White will take that energy into elimination rounds next Wednesday when he faces off against Lukasz Ciszek of Poland.
How did White get his start?
"I got started in archery four years ago," White told KVUE Sports Director Jeff Jones. "I have six national records and I am very proud of those national records."
He practices six days a week, three hours a day. The constant training earned him a trip overseas.
"It's not a surprise that I've had good things come my way with hard work, but I never expected it to be this amazing," White said.
White's success comes in the para-archery division, a discipline for athletes classified with a physical or visual impairment.
"I have congenital femoral deficiency, which is pretty much a fancy way of saying that I have one leg shorter than the other," White said. "I have a variety of other issues with my leg that have caused me to have over 20 surgeries. And so, overall, my right leg is just a way weaker, has less range of motion and causes me to be a little off-balanced while I shoot."
The disability that has impacted White's life has changed his perspective on everything – including archery.
"Without that strength that's come along with all of my surgeries, I wouldn't be the person I am today," White said. "I wouldn't be the archer I am today. I wouldn't be as resilient as an archer, both mentally and emotionally."
