Our KNX Hero of the Week, Team USA para-archer Damon Whittaker, is inspiring others to be great, with his eyes set on LA28!
Damon Whittaker Courtesy of Angel City Sports and Eric M. Dearborn
Damon, who is from Inglewood, turned a life-altering injury as a teenager into a successful career as an athlete.
“I have been doing target archery with Team USA since 2023,” he told Heroes host Heather Jordan. “Archery was something that I tried years ago when I was younger.”
Damon, who was diagnosed as a quadriplegic, uses adaptive equipment to compete.
Courtesy of Angel City Sports and Eric M. Dearborn
“I have maybe 85% use of my hands and arms,” he said. “ I can grab things. I can do this and do that, but if you were to give me a button-up shirt and me try to button up that top button, I just can't do it because of the dexterity in my fingers.”
He’s also an archery coach for Angel City Sports, and on September 24th, he’ll be honored as their 2026 Athlete of the Year at their Impact Through Innovation Gala.
“I like to play all sports,” he said. “The way that I look at it is, I can't influence someone else to try to give adaptive sports a try without me being able to say I've done it myself and I can give them my personal experience. So if you say if you like tennis, hey, I know exactly where and who I can set you up with if you're interested, and that's kind of like how I can do it. And then they'll ask me, ‘Well, have you tried it?’ Yes, I have. It was very hard, but it was fun at the same time.”
Courtesy of Angel City Sports and Eric M. Dearborn
Damon is also training to qualify for the LA28 Paralympic Games!
“That is an ultimate goal of mine, and we are working hard on it,” he said. “Trust me, we're working hard.”
For more information about the upcoming Impact Through Innovation Gala with Angel City Sports, go to https://www.classy.org/event/2026-angel-city-sports-awards-gala/e790350
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