Knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com
MOORESVILLE
Fifty years ago, while snow tubing in California, David Kiley slammed into a tree, injured his spinal cord and became paralyzed from the waist down.
Since then, Kiley concentrated on what he can do rather than what he can’t.
What Kiley could do was scheduled to be celebrated all weekend in Colorado, when he officially became a member of the 2022 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame class.
After his injury, Kiley turned himself into one of the best athletes in the world: Not just among disabled athletes, but among all athletes. The company he will keep in this Hall of Fame class is extraordinary. It also includes Olympic royalty like swimmer Michael Phelps, soccer player Mia Hamm, figure skater Michelle Kwan and skier Lindsey Vonn.
But Kiley, now 69 years old and a Mooresville resident since 1996, did some things even that starry group didn’t do. In an age of sports specialization across the globe, Kiley was a multi-sport athlete of the highest order.
Kiley’s signature sport was wheelchair basketball, where he was unofficially recognized as the best player in the world for a number of years. But he also won Paralympics medals in Alpine skiing. And for a while, in 1976, he was the fastest wheelchair athlete in the world in track and field.
“It was pretty challenging,” Kiley said, “running from a game to the track. I came away with five gold medals that year and I didn’t even know what I was doing.”
That was a…
