Nathan Riech
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nickname(s) | Dogg, GrayWolf | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Fresno, California, U.S. | 5 February 1995|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 6' 1" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Country | ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Paralympic athletics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Disability class | T38 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event(s) | 1500 metres | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Club | Vic City Elite | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coached by | Heather Hennigar Mike Van Tighem | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
|
Nathan "Nate" Riech (born 5 February 1995) is a Canadian Paralympic athlete who competes in middle-distance running events in international level events. He has a dual citizenship with Canada and the United States.[1]
Personal life[]
Riech was born in a sporting family: his father Todd Riech competed for United States at the 1996 Summer Olympics in the men's javelin throw, his mother Ardin Tucker was a Canadian pole vaulter who competed in the 2002 Commonwealth Games. His grandfather, Jim Harrison, played in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins. Riech's cousin Georganne Moline competed in the 400 metre hurdles in the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Olympics while his stepmother Brittany Borman also competed in the same Olympics in the women's javelin throw.[2][3]
Riech's disability occurred after a freak accident aged ten while he was playing golf with friends, a golf ball hit Riech in the back of the head which caused him to have a brain injury which affected the right side of his body.[4]
Sporting career[]
Riech began running at ten years old in Chandler, Arizona. He went on to run NCAA track at Furman University and University of South Alabama.[5] He began competing internationally in 2018 in the in Berlin where he broke the 800 metres and 1500 metres T38 world records, one year later, he broke then 1500 metre world record again. He won his first medal in the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima.[6][7]
References[]
- ^ "Nathan Riech - Canadian Paralympic Committee". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 23 April 2020.
- ^ "Nate Riech - International Paralympic Committee". International Paralympic Committee. 23 April 2020.
- ^ "Island runners Riech, Stanley on their mark for Paralympic battle in Tokyo". Times Colonist. 18 November 2019.
- ^ "Canada has new Paralympic middle-distance running star in Nate Riech". National Post. 6 July 2018.
- ^ "Canada's Nate Riech earns 1500M gold in his Paralympic debut". CTVNews.ca. 2021.
- ^ "Canada's Riech wins gold, Stewart silver at final day of para athletic worlds". cbc.ca. 15 November 2019.
- ^ "Athlete of the Month - July 2019". Canadian Sport Institute. 23 April 2020.
- 1995 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Fresno, California
- Paralympic track and field athletes of Canada
- Canadian male middle-distance runners
- World Para Athletics Championships winners
- Medalists at the 2019 Parapan American Games
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic gold medalists for Canada
- Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field)