LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
With Spring in the air and competition season in full swing, our athletes are working harder than ever to prove to the world that they are a force to be respected. Here at the SDSU Adapted Athletics program, we help develop these athletes to be the very best they can be as people, professionals, and athletes. We do this by teaching the importance of following and exemplifying our CREED each and every day, on and off the field, court, or track. Our CREED stands for Commitment, Respect, Excellence, Empowerment, and Diversity and is designed to act as a guide toward improving our positive impact in the world every day. In this newsletter, and over the next four newsletters, I would like to discuss one of these guiding principles starting with Commitment.
When I think about commitment and what it means to commit your whole being toward something, I consistently picture the GOATs of the world. From Michael Jordan and Peyton Manning to Serena Williams and Michelle Obama, the benefits of commitment on leaving a lasting legacy in the world are clear to see. In the adaptive sports movement, and within the San Diego State University community specifically, commitment is everywhere you look. Our athletes prove their commitment in our program everyday in various ways, including attending training sessions, tabling on behalf of our program, and presenting their elite athlete presentations to teach others about their lives as collegiate adaptive student-athletes.
Beyond what our athletes prove day in and day out, it would be a disservice to not mention the two student organizations who support our athletes every year: Aztec Adaptive Sports (AAS) and Adapted Sports Physical Therapy (ASPT). These registered student organizations (RSOs) are at vastly different points in their history, yet have impacted our program, and specifically our athletes, in their own powerful ways. AAS has been active since 2015 and was actually the precursor to what would eventually become the official Adapted Athletics program in 2018. The students of AAS have shown their commitment to the adaptive sports movement every year by helping Adapted Athletics with programming and events, volunteering at events in the greater San Diego area, and putting on their own amazing events and programming all to move the progress of athletes with physical disabilities forward. On the other hand, ASPT is in its first year as an official RSO and has hit the ground running since its inception in February. The students in ASPT are all studying to be physical therapists and have shown an unmatched commitment to help the Adapted Athletics athletes. They have been working with our adaptive athletes in a pro bono adaptive clinic in order to help prepare them for competition and keep their tough training regiments sustainable by working on corrective exercises and recovery modalities. Without their support, our athletes would not be able to sustain the level of commitment we ask of them on the field, court, and track.
I would like to send my sincerest gratitude toward these two groups for the unmatched commitment to enhance every aspect of the Adapted Athletics program and the greater adaptive sports movement. Without all of you, we would not be able to reach the level we are currently at, and I can’t wait to show the world where we go next!
To the invaluable adaptive movement supporters reading this, take a moment this month to think about where you are committing your time, energy, and precious resources in life. Make sure these are areas where your heart and passions truly lay. Until next time, Go Aztecs!
- A.J. Munoz-Bond, Interim Director Adapted Athletic
