Scout Bassett

Last updated
Scout Bassett
Personal information
Birth nameZhu Fuzhi
NationalityAmerican
Born (1988-08-18) 18 August 1988 (age 36)
Nanjing, China
Height4 ft 9 in (145 cm)
Weight86 lb (39 kg)
Sport
CountryFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
SportParalympic Track & Field
Disability class T42 / F42
Coached by Tonie Campbell
Medal record
Women's para-athletics
Representing Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
World Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2017 London100 m T42
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2017 LondonLong Jump T42
Parapan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2019 LimaLong Jump T42
Women's paratriathlon
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2008 VancouverAWAD PC2
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2010 Budapest TRI 2
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2011 Beijing TRI 2

Scout Bassett (born Zhu Fuzhi; [1] August 18, 1988) is an American Paralympic track and field athlete. [1] [2]

Contents

Bassett spent her first seven years of life in a government-run orphanage in Nanjing, China after she was found abandoned on the side of a street following the tragic loss of her right leg in a chemical fire as a newborn baby. While growing up, she made a makeshift prosthetic leg using leather belts and masking tape and began to walk, aged six, but never went outside of the orphanage in which she was being raised. Bassett was adopted in 1995 by an American couple from Michigan.

Early life

After being adopted just shy of her eighth birthday, Bassett grew up in Harbor Springs, Michigan. On growing up in Harbor Springs, Bassett recalls "They were so unaccepting of me," she says. "The girls were so noninclusive and mean, and being the only Asian in an all-white school was not fun." Scout buried herself in books, plowing through as many political biographies as her brain could digest, and sports, which felt like the easiest and most direct route to assimilation. [1]

After completing high school, Bassett attended UCLA on a full scholarship. She graduated in 2011 with degrees in Sociology and Anthropology. [3]

Paralympic career

Bassett began playing soccer, aged ten before starting her athletic career by participating in the Challenged Athletes Foundation, aged 14, who granted her a prosthetic running leg, then attended the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center in California at the age of 18. She first started to compete in triathlons and won three silver medals and one bronze medal in the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships, in the 2011 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships, she went to China for the first time since she was adopted. [4]

Bassett transitioned to track and field before the paratriathlon event was introduced in the 2016 Summer Paralympics. She did an entire first full season of athletic training attempting to qualify for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, when she got the opportunity to try and compete in the US Paralympic team. Bassett came last in the 100m at the US Championships, which was a qualifier for the Paralympic Games, as she failed to make the team and almost decided to quit track and field. [5]

In 2015, Bassett still wanted to be a Paralympian and moved to San Diego so that she could do full-time training and she started breaking national records in the T42 classification. [6] She then went on to qualify and compete in the 2016 Summer Paralympic but ended up being fifth in the 100m and tenth in the long jump. In 2017, Bassett successfully attended the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships in London, United Kingdom, where she won her first international medals in the 100m and long jump. She is currently the world record holder in the 400m T42 and American holder in 100m and 200m. [7]

In 2019, Bassett took home the gold medal in the Women's Long Jump T42-44/T61-63 at the Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru.

Bassett was one of 17 athletes featured in eleventh edition of ESPN The Magazine's Body Issue [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Reinertsen</span> American Paralympic triathlete

Sarah Reinertsen is an American Paralympic triathlete and former track athlete. She was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, a bone-growth disorder; her affected leg was amputated above the knee at age seven.

Sandra "Sandy" Dukat is an American Paralympic athlete. Born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, she had her right leg amputated above the knee at the age of four. She has competed internationally in alpine skiing, swimming and triathlon. As of February 2013, she holds the marathon world record for above-knee amputee women.

Jessica Tuomela is a Canadian paralympic competitive swimmer and para triathlete who was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. She won silver in the 50-metre freestyle at the 2000 Summer Paralympics and bronze in the Women's PTVI Paratriathlon at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jessica Long</span> Russian-American Paralympic swimmer

Jessica Tatiana Long is a Russian-born American Paralympic swimmer from Baltimore, Maryland, who competes in the S8, SB7 and SM8 category events. She has held many world records and competed at six Paralympic Games, winning 30 medals. She has won over 50 world championship medals.

Christine Ingrid Wolf, OAM is an Australian Paralympic athlete born in Germany who competed for Germany and Australia mainly in category F42 long jump and T 42 100 m events.

Miriam Sheppard is a New Zealand former para athlete and para swimmer. She was the 2009 ITU Paratriathlon World Champion in TRI3 classification. In addition, she represented New Zealand at the 2004 Summer Paralympic Games. in Athens, Greece, in swimming, as well as at the 2005 CPISRA World Games – in both swimming and track & field. Jenkins is affected by mild cerebral palsy in her left side.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Winters</span> Australian Paralympic athlete

Amy Louise Winters, OAM is an arm amputee Australian Paralympic athlete. She won seven medals at three Paralympic Games, including five gold medals.

Marlon Shirley is a paralympic athlete gold medalist from the United States competing mainly in category T44 events. He has been called the "fastest amputee in the world". He is known for being the first lower extremity amputee to break the 11 second barrier in the 100 meters. He has held world records in the 100M, the Long Jump, High Jump and the 200M.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Cartwright</span> Australian Paralympic athlete (born 1989)

Kelly Cartwright is an Australian athlete and powerlifter. She won two medals at the London 2012 Paralympics, and represented Australia in the Beijing 2008 Paralympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Swift</span>

Jack Swift is an Australian athletics competitor and paratriathlete. He was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in athletics in the 400m and 4 × 100 m events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claire Cashmore</span> British Paralympic swimmer (born 1988)

Claire Cashmore, is a Paralympic Swimming Champion and PTS5 classified British paratriathlete. She has been to four Paralympic Games with swimming and has won 4 bronze, 3 silver, and 1 gold medal. Cashmore also broke the world record in the SM9 100m Individual Medley in 2009. She decided to switch to competing in paratriathlon after winning gold and silver at the Paralympic Games in 2016, and became ITU World Champion in the PTS5 classification in 2019. Claire Cashmore is based in Loughborough, England. She was born in Redditch, England, without a left forearm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Henshaw</span> British Paralympic swimmer

Charlotte Sarah Henshaw is a British Paralympic full-time athlete across multiple disciplines. Originally a swimmer, she changed to canoeing from 2017, becoming the reigning World champion in the KL2 (five-time) and VL3 (three-time) 200m events. In September 2021, at the delayed 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, she became a Paralympic champion at her fourth games, winning the Women's KL2 event.

Helgi Sveinsson is a Paralympian athlete from Iceland competing in throwing, sprint and jumping events. He is a F42/T42 category athlete. At the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships he threw a competition record to take the gold medal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Doughty</span> Australian triathlete and psychologist

Kate Næss is an Australian paraequestrian and paratriathlete. She won a bronze medal at the 2015 World Triathlon Grand Final. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics when paratriathlon made its debut at the Paralympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanessa Low</span> Australian Paralympic athlete

Vanessa Low is a German-born Australian Paralympic athlete competing in T42 sprint and long jump events. Born in East Germany, she gained Australian nationality in June 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melissa Reid (paratriathlete)</span> British Paralympic triathlete

Melissa Reid is a visually impaired British paratriathlete who competes in the PTVI classification. She is a Paralympic bronze medallist and a former World and European Champion. She is based in Falmouth in Cornwall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allysa Seely</span> American paratriathlete and Paralympic gold medalist

Allysa Seely is an American paratriathlete and gold medalist at the 2016 and 2020 Summer Paralympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lauren Parker</span> Australian paratriathlete

Lauren Parker is an Australian para-triathlete and para-cyclist. She won a silver medal (triathlon) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics and two gold and silver (cycling) medals at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Townsend</span> UK paratriathlete

Joseph Townsend is a British paratriathlete who competes in the PTWC classification. Townsend has won European and world medals as well as becoming Commonwealth Champion in 2018. He represented Great Britain at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, where he finished sixth. Townsend has won the GBR Paratriathlon National Championships for four consecutive years- 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019. He lost both legs whilst serving in Afghanistan, after stepping on an IED in 2008. Joe Townsend is based in Eastbourne, England, where he was born.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Peasgood</span> British paratriathlete (born 1995)

George Peasgood is a British paratriathlete who competes in the PTS5 classification. He represented Great Britain at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, where he finished seventh. Peasgood has won the GBR Paratriathlon National Championships four times- 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019. George Peasgood is based in Loughborough, England where he trains at the Loughborough Performance Centre. He was born in Saffron Walden, Essex.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Paralympian Scout Bassett embraces her story of scars, survival". ESPN.com. 2019-08-29. Retrieved 2019-09-06.
  2. "Scout Bassett - Athlete Bio". Team USA. 30 June 2019. Archived from the original on June 8, 2017.
  3. "Bridgestone Partners with Seven Inspiring U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Athletes on the Road to Tokyo 2020". www.abc-7.com. Retrieved 2019-09-06.
  4. "Meet Scout Bassett". scoutbassett.com. 30 June 2019.
  5. Lieberman, Stuart (30 May 2017). "Scout Bassett Went From An Orphanage In China To The Paralympics And She's Not Done Yet". Team USA. Archived from the original on June 4, 2017.
  6. Axon, Rachel (9 September 2016). "Paralympian Scout Bassett overcomes disability, challenges through running". usatoday.com.
  7. "Scout Bassett - Challenged Athletes". Challenged Athletes. 30 June 2019.
  8. "The Body Issue". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2019-09-06.