EAGLE MOUNTAIN, Utah -- Eagle Mountain children lined the street Monday morning for a welcome home like no other for Paralympian David Blair.
Blair won a gold medal for throwing discus at the Paralympic Games in Rio De Janeiro.
The city paraded him around town to show a few schools his gold medal.
Blair was born with a club foot, and he spoke about the challenges that poses.
"I've broken many bones on that side of it, on the side of it, many, many times, and the foot is full of arthritis," Blair told students at Ranches Academy, where his youngest daughter attends. "It feels kind of OK when I throw, and after I throw it hurts real, real bad."
Another student at Ranches Academy, Noah, is the one who inspired Blair to go for the Paralympics.
Blair threw discus in college on a scholarship at Weber State University. He didn't know it then, but he did break a world record 20 years ago. But, then, a couple years ago he was just keeping up his exercise at a church basketball game when he had a life-changing moment.
"I was just playing a church basketball game with the other able-bodied guys, and Noah came up to me with his mom and said he thought it was neat that I was playing with them," he said. "Noah has a disability with his leg too. We've even seen the same doctors. So I thought, what if I start practicing for the games, and then I could maybe be an inspiration for children everywhere with disabilities never to give up on your dreams?"
That's what Blair did. And in 2016 he brought home the gold medal for the discus.
Blair called Noah up to the front of the classroom and gave him a taste of the gold. He put the gold medal over Noah's shoulders, and Noah turned to the class with his arms up in victory.
"We are fighting something as we go through life," Blair said. "I think the point is to stick to it and trust in yourself."
