Page 22 - Peter Farrelly Issue

Leeper: The advice I love to give to other disabled athletes who are coming up is one, the only true disabil- ity in life is a bad attitude. Yes, we’re labeled as dis- abled individuals, but people who have a bad attitude have it way worse than we do. Set your goals so high, there’s nothing impossible. If you want to run in the Olympics, run in the Olympics. If you want to play in the NBA, play in the NBA. If you want to play in the MLB, if you want to be—whatever you set your goals and set out what you want to do, do it to be the best in the world. Not just the best disabled athlete in the world, but the best in the world because you can be the best in the world.
Kaplan: What do you think needs to change in the world of sports for disabled athletes?
Leeper: It’s to understand that we’re athletes and we deserve a fair chance just like everybody else, not to box us in, to put us all on the other side. If you ask me, the Olympics and the Paralympics should run together. We could run simultaneously in the same event. Why are they separate events. I know we’re working better for inclusivity and inclusion, but we need more inclusiv- ity, more inclusion. We have some of the best stories in the Paralympics and within the disabled athletes that need to be highlighted, not only just my story. I’m one of many, many stories. I’m thankful that I found the right team to tell my story, but there are so many amaz- ing stories out there in the world that other individuals need to hear.
If we just took the time to highlight these stories, put these disabled athletes on the proper platform, man, we would all win. We would all win.
Kaplan: You are also pursuing motivational speaking and acting. Can you tell me more about that? What actors do you model yourself after?
Leeper: Man, oh, that’s a tough one! Motivational speaking has been something that’s been a passion of mine for years. I’ve really been diving deep because I feel like I have a very impactful story to tell to motivate not only the next generation, but companies, business opportunities, I can go in there to share my story of my personal experience trying to be the best in the world, whether it’s on or off the track. Just having that mindset of being the best in the world and that process that it takes to be the best in the world, I really enjoy that.
And I’ve been really finding my peace in acting. I like to model myself, that’s a tough one, a little of Michael B [Jordan], I guess, or Omar Epps. I know people say I kind of look like Omar Epps a little bit. I love obviously Denzel Washington’s mindset of honing in your talents and your skills and being the best at what you do. These are some of the Mount Rushmore of individuals I’ve seen. Idris Elba, the Mount Rushmores of actors that I
consider to be the best in the game that I hope one day, with more time and more practice and more experiences and more opportunities, I could be there and be just as good.
Kaplan: At the close of the documentary, you quote Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. And if you can’t walk, then crawl. But whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.” How are you moving forward?
Leeper: Man, that’s one of my favorite quotes that I love to say. There are some days I wake up and I can barely even walk to the bathroom. Some days I wake up and it’s hard for me to get to my car to get to practice. I say this to myself daily because that’s what I remind myself. Some days I can’t run. Some days I can’t even walk. If I’ve got to crawl to practice, to my next meeting, to my next opportunity, I’m going to crawl. Whatever I’m going to do, I’m not going to stop. That’s what I want to pass along to the next generation.
How I do it? I wake up and I plan out my day and I go and attack that day. Whether it’s on the track to get ready for the next Paralympic Games, it’s how I’m going to make a statement. It’s going on stage sharing my story to motivate the next generation. That’s how I’m going to make my statement. Shooting an audition hopefully to book a movie role or a commercial role. That’s how I’m going make my statement. But whatever I do, I going to keep moving forward and look for the next opportunity that’s presented in front of my life.
Kaplan: What do you want people to take away from your story?
Leeper: From my story and even from the documentary, I want people to walk away and say, “Wow! He’s a fighter!” In this day and age we always try to tell these nice, beautiful pieces that make you feel good, and the reality of it is, sometimes life hits you hard. It doesn’t matter how hard you try or if it’s fair or not, sometimes you get dealt a bad hand. But the most important part is how you respond to that and how you wake up each and every day and continue to keep fighting and pushing. As people are watching my journey and my process, even though I maybe was dealt a bad or unfair hand going through this process, they see me and figure out how I picked the pieces up and how I continue to keep fighting for my life.
I would encourage everybody to go watch the documen- tary when it comes out. Not only me but the whole team union team put their blood, sweat, and tears, their heart into this documentary. It’s meant to be shared. Whatever you gain from it, I hope you use it in your life. I think people will really enjoy this.
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