Team USA Athlete Shea Foster Withdraws From Paralympics After ‘Medical Reasons’, Is ‘Devastated’

Track and field athlete Shea Foster will no longer compete at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.

“I am proud of all the adversity I have faced in my life and that I have never given up,” Foster, 27, wrote via Instagram on Thursday, September 5. “I have fought hard to come back from getting hit by an 18-wheeler and the multiple surgeries and pain it caused me. Due to medical reasons, I cannot run this Saturday. I’m devastated.”

Foster was temporarily comatose and paralyzed after an 18-wheeler truck slammed into his car in 2012.

He continued in his post, “I will try to give myself the grace of making it this far. I will continue to cheer on my teammates as they compete because that’s what’s most important. Thank you for your love and support along this new Paralympic journey. I will use this as motivation for the Paralympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.”

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The Surviving Paradise alum had qualified for the T38 men’s 1500-meter race, of which he holds the American record. T38 is a Paralympics track & field classification for athletes with coordination impairments, such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis, many of which can be results of cerebral palsy.

Following his 2012 accident, Foster underwent a spinal fusion surgery, but there were concerns about whether he would ever walk again.

“I suffered a multitude of devastating injuries. I ended up needing to get a spinal fusion and a bunch of other surgical procedures,” Foster recalled via Instagram in October 2021. “Not knowing if I would be able to run again yet alone walk again. Having 50 staples in my body and having to relearn how to walk was a real struggle. Doctors were saying that it’s a miracle that I’m not paralyzed from the waist down. I thought I’d never run again. My life will never be the same after this car accident.”

Speaking with Team USA’s Track & Field organization last month, Foster further addressed the accident.

“Thank goodness it hit me on the passenger side because if it had hit me on the driver’s side, I wouldn’t be here,” Foster said in the interview published in August, dreaming of a podium finish at the Paris Paralympics. “A medal would be fantastic. I think the experience alone, being there with USA across your chest, knowing the ups and downs and obstacles.”

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He added, “I intend to support my teammates as much as possible because you never know who you can impact and give that extra push to accomplish their dreams of winning a medal.”

At the time, Foster was already looking forward to the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.

“It’s on home soil, and I think we have a big chance and obligation of all Team USA Para athletes to continue to tell our stories and show that it’s OK to be different,” Foster said. “That’s something I’m really looking forward to after Paris.”