August 20, 2025 • 19 mins
The journey from one Paralympics to another isn't easy.That was especially true from Tokyo to Paris, with an atypical three-year gap between Games due to the COVID-19 pandemic pushing back the former.But that wasn't a problem for Ezra Frech.The Team USA track and field star, at just 16 years old in 2021, finished fifth in the high jump T63 event with a personal best and eighth in the long jump T63 event. He took those moments and built upon them with an intense three-year training period to get ready for Paris in 2024. While training, Frech had another job -- executive producing the new Peacock docuseries "Adaptive." The doc follows Frech and three other Paralympic athletes on their journey from Tokyo to Paris."It's basically everything that a sports doc should be," Frech explained in an interview with NBC. "It's really raw, emotional, authentic. There's lots of highs, lows, ups, downs, tears, laughter and, in my case, the peak of the peak -- winning two Paralympic gold medals."It's the behind-the-scenes of all that. So, if anyone wants to know what goes on behind the curtain in my life, 'Adaptive' is it."As he says, Frech was not only successful in making a great sports doc -- he was also successful in his primary goal of becoming a Paralympic champion. The then-19-year-old from Los Angeles won gold in the 100m T63 and high jump T63."The way 'Adaptive' portrays me is a hyper-obsessive, competitive kid who will stop at nothing that's in front of him to get to his goals," Frech said.Para Athlete Ezra Frech credits his mother for instilling confidence, passion to share his story about disability. U.S. Paralympic athlete Ezra Frech has made it his mission to share his inspirational story in hopes of normalizing disability. However, none of this would be possible if it weren't for his mother, Bahar. Ezra opens up about how she shaped him into a confident teacher and helper. "Adaptive" isn't just about Frech, though. The series also follows swimmer Jamal Hill and wheelchair basketball players Courtney Ryan and Josie Aslakson.All four athletes in "Adaptive" medaled in Paris, with Hill grabbing a bronze and Ryan and Aslakson taking home silvers."Jamal is one of the most talented swimmers in the world," Frech said. "He is a star in the Paralympic space. He has a deep-rooted sense of advocacy in everything that he does. I might be biased, but he is a dang interesting character to watch."The two wheelchair basketball players were teammates, but each brought their own unique style and personality to the doc, French explained."Courtney is a very fiery, fiesty, amazing wheelchair basketball player on the women's team who battles a lot of adversity and continues to persevere," Frech said."... Jose is a sweet, beautiful, kind soul and she's really talented," Frech said. "Her story is amazing. Her and Courtney both coach at (University of Arizona), so they really care about the pipeline of women's wheelchair basketball.""Adaptive" premiered July 28, exclusively on Peacock. All three episodes are available to stream now.Here's the trailer:Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQcHuAZSkf0
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ezra, I've experienced all three episodes, Dude, Man, I'm telling you,
there's so much that goes on in each one that
I want a fourth, I want more because there's just
so much empowerment that all of you share in one moment.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
I appreciate that. Thank you so much. I'm so glad
that you enjoyed it.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
True, truly, it's one of those you know, because people
are going to go into it and they're going to go,
who is this and why should I care? Well, right
in the very beginning, you begin to care and you
begin to have that emotional connection. Is what you do.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Absolutely, now, that was our goal. We wanted to tell
epic stories. The reality is, if you like sport, you
like entertainment. Adaptive is a show that you should watch.
It's as simple as that. And we wanted to capture people.
We wanted to tell these great stories. We wanted people
to be able to turn on Peacock if you have
a subscription, and watch some of the most riveting stories
(00:55):
you could have ever imagined. And I appreciate that you
feel the same way and you've recognized that, and thank
you for tuning in, my friend.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
And it reaches beyond the sport. We get to see
your real life, and that, to me is the connection
because you're right, we were all flawed, but but you weren't.
You are still to this day not afraid.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
You're absolutely right. It's let me be even more broad.
If you like good stories, period, adaptive is for you,
simple as that, Like, that's what this is about. And yeah,
it is a little scary to be fully vulnerable in
front of a camera like that. I mean, five plus
years of my life everything filmed, everything filmed. And you know,
(01:34):
I told myself before I did this, I said, if
I'm going to do this, I'm gonna do it right.
I'm gonna do it completely authentically, and I'm going to
be one hundred percent open and vulnerable and let the world,
you know, world just consume my life. And that's exactly
what we've done. And I think we I think we
did it the right way. And you know, thankfully it
turned out really well and the critics are enjoying it,
the fans are enjoying it. So it's all all we
(01:55):
can ask for.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
Don't you think? It also humanizes the Paralympics because we've
all read the headlines, you know, in magazines and We've
seen it, you know, in a three minute clip on
television or YouTube. But this right here puts you guys
in the identity of being human.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Absolutely, one hundred percent does that. And it's all about,
you know, making content for the average American to be
able to consume in a digestible way. I mean, they're
so so, so many different storylines that intersect and connect
and I mean story beads, and I just couldn't have
(02:33):
imagined that everything would come together in such a beautiful
way like this. But you're right, it's about humanizing these
athletes and it's beautiful to see it all on the
on the big screen. I'll tell you.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
One of the biggest shockers is the opening and it says,
Dick's Sporting Goods. I'm going, what w what does Dick
Sporting Goods have to do with this man? I shot there?
Speaker 2 (02:52):
I mean, listen, Dick's Sporting Goods. The reality is documentary filmmaking,
you know, is a difficult landscape to navigate, and so
to have a partner like Dick Sporting Goods who came
in trusted the project, you know, believed in it, and
then could you know, help us, help us, you know,
finish this thing and fund us throughout the process is
(03:13):
super crucial. They've been, They've been an amazing partner. And
listen that there, Dick Sporting Goods is all about the
power of sports changed lives, and that's what Adaptive is
is an example of that. And I mean, I'll tell
you a funny story. We were up against the budget
a little bit leading into the Paris Paralympic Games, and
the whole team collectively decided that we were going to
(03:33):
spend the entirety of the budget to film at the
Paralympic Games, just banking, banking on the sole fact that
if I were to win the gold medal, we would
then be able to get funding to finish it afterwards.
So I'm sitting I'm sitting there before my competition, thinking, man,
we put five plus years into this project, hundreds and
hundreds of people who put their blood, sweat and tears
(03:53):
but their careers on this project. And if I don't
deliver and win this gold medal, this doesn't show up
on peacock. And so there was nothing more motivating than that.
And thankfully, you know, thankfully I came through.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
There's something that is still living with me even today
when it comes to all three parts of this, and
I don't want to do a spoiler, but the thing is,
I'm going to say what what is still inside of me?
And then we can grow from there. But I don't
want to spoil it because I want other people to
have the same experience. Never never again, dude, you change me,
never again, you changed my life.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
I wow, I sincerely appreciate that, and I yeah, I mean,
I'll share a little bit of it for you know,
for the audience, because I you know, I've said it
publicly before and they'll get to see the real behind
the scenes of it. But you know, after I placed
fifth the Tokyo Paralympic Games, I was so upset by
coming so close to the podium that I set the
(04:44):
screensaver on my phone as a photo of the metalist
that beat me with the words never again, and then
that motivated me twenty times over. Every time I open
up my phone, I see that photo of the guys
that beat me and motivated me to to go try
to get my revenge at the next Paralympic Games. So
I really appreciate you saying that, and yeah, I mean
(05:07):
truly the you know, that's all pictured, that's all pictured inadaptive.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
See this is more than just sports fans. This right
here is for the nurses and the doctors at the hospital.
This is for bankers, This is for grocery store employees.
When they watch something like this and they realize that
they're facing those walls every dang day. You know, take
a picture never again, and it really it serves as
that fuel.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Absolutely, you're absolutely right. This can be applied to anything.
The reality is the person who wants it more will
get it. It's as simple as that. How badly do
you want your dreams? How badly do you want to
change your situation? How badly do you want to progress?
Take that photo, remember those moments that motivate you, and
write never again on it, and there I can promise
(05:53):
you there will be nothing more motivating than that.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Another powerful quote. What people don't know is what it's
like to be, Oh my god, hit me in the gut.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
One hundred percent. You're right, you know, one hundred percent.
You know, people have a lot of opinions nowadays. It's
super easy to get caught up and uh, you know
what other people perceive of you. But if they've never
been in your shoes. Then how can they you know,
how can they even have an opinion to begin with?
So you're absolutely right, and you know that was a
great quote. You're absolutely right.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
We get to see your birth and and that to me,
I cried like a baby. I did, because I mean,
oh my god, you're serious. Oh my god, did you
see your mother? I want to hold my baby. I
want to hold my baby. And I just I just
wanted to climb through that screen and say we please
let her hold her baby, and and oh my god,
it's so special.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Oh thank you so much, thank you so so much. No, sincerely,
I mean, if you want to watch a masterclass in parenting,
this documentary is also for you, right watch Adaptive on
Peacock because my mom is the most amazing person I've
ever met my entire life. And she she literally shows
you all what it's like to raise a child with
(07:03):
a disability and how to instill confidence in them and
how to not let them or treat to those insecurities.
If you literally want to know how to raise a
child with confidence, I mean, my mom doesn't that in
the doc You're absolutely.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Right, Oh my god. And then each time that she
appears on the screen, you get deeper and deeper into
her storyline as well. It's almost like having you know,
the act or the talent beside you. Is is the
you know, he's going to get a trophy for for
just being there as the you know, the assistant.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Absolutely, no, my mom is pivotal. I mean genuinely, I'm
not the person I am today without her. And uh
and it's all shown. It's all shown in the doc
and it's I mean genuinely masterclass and parenting on her end.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
Please do not move. There's more with ez refrec coming
up next. The name of the documentary on Paramount is adaptive.
We're back with ez refrec All. Right, without spoiling it again,
I'm just gonna set it up, okay, but but you know,
the first god, man, he didn't make it. Second attempt,
didn't make it that third attempt, and then something happens.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Right, I mean listen, Uh, you know we won't be
won't spoil it for the listeners because they you know,
they got to go check it out and watch it
on their own because they'll definitely enjoy it. But but no,
this doc is about It's about the lows, the losses,
the failure, they'll almost making it. The laughter, the tears,
the anger, and then all of that building to the
(08:29):
opportunity to deliver on gold. It's as simple as that,
and so right there's cliffhangers, the edge of the sea.
It's just it's an epic, epic journey, and I'm so
glad that you enjoyed it. I really am.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
One of the things that I would love to be
a fly on the wall are the let's say only
eleven to twelve year olds or even fifteen year olds
that that inspire and influence the other students in their schools.
And when we get to see you standing there firm, strong, confident,
you've got courage, and you're sharing a positive message, that
to me is a message to the younger generation be heard.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Absolutely. My message to the younger generation is dream big, genuinely. Genuinely.
Most people set goals that are too easy to accomplish.
They accomplish those goals, and then in turn, they forfeit
a ton of the potential just because they didn't believe
that they were capable of war. Always always believe you're
capable of war. Dream big. Set the most audacious, unrealistic,
(09:29):
statistically unlikely goal, and then pursue it with everything you.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Have being on National TV. My God, Ellen degenerous, and
it just continued to grow and grow and grow beyond that.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
Yeah, absolutely, I mean I had the opportunity to be
on Allen, I had the opportunity to do a lot
of these sort of bigger, you know, bigger shows and
get the opportunity to continue to hope, hopefully, influence the
way the world sees disability. That's what it's about, That's
what we need to do. That's what I feel I
was put on this earth for. It's to normalize disability,
be an example of what's possible as an amputee. And
(10:04):
you know, I got the opportunity to start doing that
very young, once again because of my mom.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
You know, during your process of personal growth and reaching
out there further and further, did you ever find yourself
on the sidelines doing what I call the silent wolf
in other words, when I was in martial arts the
a third degree black belt, what happened to is that
my master would have me stand on the sidelines. He says,
you will learn more here about what you're doing wrong
than out there. And I feel that in watching you,
(10:29):
you know, lay claim to all of your victories, and
I would sit there and say, I know he's got
to be watching from the sidelines. He really is a
silent wolf.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah, I mean literally, you have to sort of put
yourself in that position and watch from the sidelines, take
a step back. That's the only way you're going to
really grow. Sometimes you have to be objective about things,
and so, you know, in a sport that's hyper emotional,
like you saw, right, hyper hyper emotional. I mean I
cried how many times as I cry this documentary, right,
But the reality is you have to be objective sometimes,
(10:58):
and you would have to you know, tough skin, and
you have to be able to walk through the fire,
and you've got to be able to hold your head
up high. And so that's what I feel like I
had to be able to do through the adversity, through
the failure, through the learnings to ultimately, you know, reach
the ultimate peak.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And the discipline the mornings when it was cold outside,
when when you had to be out there no matter what,
how did you bust through that wall? Because we do
live in an age where a lot of people just say, Okay,
I'll get to it tomorrow, not you buddy.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Right, exactly. You can't. You can't. I mean listen, the
same discipline and the same motivation that you guys will
see in this documentary to all the listeners. You know,
the same discipline you'll see in Adaptive can be applied
to truly anything in life, right early mornings, getting good sleep,
recovering properly, optimizing the right things in your life. Right,
(11:50):
all those fine, little small details that you might not
think make that big of a difference, you know, one off,
but then when you add them all up together, it
makes a really, really big difference to the journey of
a high achiever is all seen on Peacock. And I
hope that people can watch this documentary knowing that whatever
(12:10):
they're doing, whatever they're going after in life, whatever goals
they have, this is a framework of how to accomplish
your goals, and it's literally portrayed for the world to see.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Do you keep a d frag journal where you ask
the questions and then question your own answers.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
You know, that's a good that's a good. Uh, that's
a good question. I've never actually done one of those before,
but I do have a journal which I'm constantly writing in. Constantly. Uh,
you know, manifesting through and uh, you know, writing down
what I aim to accomplish, and then in a way
we do that because I'm surrounded by such an amazing
team that we're constantly you know, we're constantly adapting to
(12:49):
adversity and then questioning the way we're adapting to it.
And then at at the you know, the expense of
just consistent, consistent, you know, growth, which will continue to occur.
But you're absolutely right, Well, you're always questioning your you know,
your responses to situations that comes up to make sure
that you're on the right track.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Yeah. Yeah, I'm glad that you brought up the people
around you because in my notes here I go that
each of one of you on the documentary, you all
have one thing in common. You have to trust the
people that surround you.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
You have to you have to trust the people around
you because it's not a solo journey, right. I might
be competing at the Games as a solo athlete, but
there are hundreds, if not thousands of people who have
made an impact in me to get to that point.
And I have to trust my coaches, I have to
trust my processists. I have to trust my physical therapists.
I have to trust my strength and conditioning coach. I
have to trust my sports psychologists. I mean, think about
(13:44):
how many people who although at the end of the
day am the one lining up mono el mono next
to these guys, the reality is to get me in
that position, I've had to trust the work of my
entire team, and so learning to be a leader in
that sense and learning to, you know, I'll activate all
of my team members to be the best versions of themselves.
This is something that I've had to figure out as well.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Here's a life coach lesson to be learned. You couldn't celebrate,
and the reason why is because you had that, you know,
a higher purpose, and that was the world record exactly.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
So at the World Championships when I won my first
world title, my coach didn't let me celebrate until we
broke the world record. And yeah, he didn't let me
celebrate till we broke the world record. And I think that's,
you know, a testament to the type of ambition that
everybody needs to have. I was, I won my first
world title, but literally wasn't allowed to celebrate until I
(14:38):
broke the world record. And so the same logic can
be applied to anything anyone is doing at any point
in life. This documentary is an example of that. Adaptive
is an example of that. Have those big dreams, have
that high high ambition, and then don't stop at anything,
don't get complacent at all until you make that a reality.
And if you're looking for more, you know, motivation or ferration,
(15:00):
literally turn on Peacock and you'll find it.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Once you hit that accomplishment. I love the fact that
the first person you went to was Mom.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Yeah, I mean listen, Mom was there since day one.
Mom built me into the man I am she you know,
she deserves every bit of that that gold metal hug.
You're absolutely right. Wow.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
And then when you teamed up with Roderick Townsend, I
mean we're talking about the best high jumper in the
era of the of the era, and it's like, what
the heck, man, when were the chances you would get
this opportunity?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah? Very special. I mean listen, I think things come
together and sometimes you have to just you know, follow
the path of a universe in a way. And that's
what that was. I felt like him and I coming
together for me to get the opportunity to train with
him one of the greatest high jumpers of all time,
and you know, have him be my coach. You know,
(15:52):
he was always an older brother kind of figure to me,
but then really, you know, it went to the next level.
And then you know, with him by my side, we
we made history. You know.
Speaker 1 (16:02):
One of the relatable moments in this and there's no
way in hell that I'm going to be the only
one that's going to relate with what goes on inside
this documentary, and that is is that. You know, when
I was in my teens, I was I wanted to
be a professional bowler, and I was doing very well
with the AGBC. But guess what happened, dude. The girlfriend.
The girlfriend got in the way of me setting my goals.
And when you talk about yes, I swear to god,
(16:23):
I swear to.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
God, how did that happen?
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Thought, Well, it's because I was I was paying attention
to her. And I remember one of my teammates comes
up and says, dude, dude, get your mind on the game,
get it off her. So I could really relate with that.
When when you bring that into the documentary, I'm going, oh,
I've been there.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Yeah, you're absolutely right. Now I was in a position
where I felt like if I had a girlfriend, it
would it would get me further away from my goals.
And you know, I was sort of blocking myself off
from the feeling of love, which in many ways can
be some of the most beautiful emotions you'll ever experience.
And so I blocked that off for a while. And
then you know, I'm not going to spoil too much,
(17:04):
but in the doc, you know, I ended up end
up finding my person and so you uh, you know,
you get to see that p trae. So listen once again.
Like you love sports, you love entertainment, adaptive is for you.
You love storytelling, you love good stories. Adaptive is for you.
If you love love, if you love romance, you want
to see how a world class athlete ends up, you know,
(17:25):
falling in love, Adaptive is for you. So this sort
of you know, the average American will find, uh, you know,
find what they'd love in this project, and and that's
super exciting.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Well, and then listener needs to understand when you begin
this this journey and you start watching the first episode,
do not be shocked that you're you're gonna jump right
into the second and then you're to go right into
the third and you're it's not gonna be one of
those where gona say I'm not getting my time back.
That's baloney. What you got was a full education.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I love it. I love it, I love it. I'm
so glad you you binged all three episodes and felt
so strong and enjoyed it as much as you did.
I mean, that's that means a lot to me. We
put we put a lot into this project. And to
see the world receive it the way they have, the
critics receive it the way they have, and then to
hear you say this, of course, it's you know, very special.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Now answer, I'm going to make a prediction, and you
can slap me upside the head if you want to.
I think you're going to get into making documentaries yourself,
because there's something about these stories that really do empower everybody.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
Absolutely, No, that's probably a very accurate prediction. That is
the plan, you know, That's what we want to do,
is we want to continue to tell these stories. We
want to tell them on the you know, the biggest
of stages, the brightest of lights, and make sure that
the world is you know, is hearing how how amazing
these stories truly are Wow, where.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
Can people go to find out more about you? Answer?
Because I want them to know who you are.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
I appreciate it. I mean, the best way to get
to know me is you know, any social media. My
username is ezrafrect my full name. I post full time
content there. But then, truly, if you want to get
to know the most behind the scenes in depth, look
in my life. You want to know who I am
at my core, make sure to extream adaptive on Peacock.
Check it out. I hope you all enjoy it because
(19:12):
clearly you know, clearly you know the world has been
receiving it well, thankfully, thank God.
Speaker 1 (19:17):
Wow, please come back to this show anytime in the future.
The door is always going to be open for you.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
Dude, absolutely absolutely, Thank you so much, my friend, this
is this is an amazing time.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Will you be brilliant today?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Okay, thank you you too,
Ezra, I've experienced all three episodes, Dude, Man, I'm telling you,
there's so much that goes on in each one that
I want a fourth, I want more because there's just
so much empowerment that all of you share in one moment.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
I appreciate that. Thank you so much. I'm so glad
that you enjoyed it.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
True, truly, it's one of those you know, because people
are going to go into it and they're going to go,
who is this and why should I care? Well, right
in the very beginning, you begin to care and you
begin to have that emotional connection. Is what you do.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Absolutely, now, that was our goal. We wanted to tell
epic stories. The reality is, if you like sport, you
like entertainment. Adaptive is a show that you should watch.
It's as simple as that. And we wanted to capture people.
We wanted to tell these great stories. We wanted people
to be able to turn on Peacock if you have
a subscription, and watch some of the most riveting stories
(00:55):
you could have ever imagined. And I appreciate that you
feel the same way and you've recognized that, and thank
you for tuning in, my friend.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
And it reaches beyond the sport. We get to see
your real life, and that, to me is the connection
because you're right, we were all flawed, but but you weren't.
You are still to this day not afraid.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
You're absolutely right. It's let me be even more broad.
If you like good stories, period, adaptive is for you,
simple as that, Like, that's what this is about. And yeah,
it is a little scary to be fully vulnerable in
front of a camera like that. I mean, five plus
years of my life everything filmed, everything filmed. And you know,
(01:34):
I told myself before I did this, I said, if
I'm going to do this, I'm gonna do it right.
I'm gonna do it completely authentically, and I'm going to
be one hundred percent open and vulnerable and let the world,
you know, world just consume my life. And that's exactly
what we've done. And I think we I think we
did it the right way. And you know, thankfully it
turned out really well and the critics are enjoying it,
the fans are enjoying it. So it's all all we
(01:55):
can ask for.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
Don't you think? It also humanizes the Paralympics because we've
all read the headlines, you know, in magazines and We've
seen it, you know, in a three minute clip on
television or YouTube. But this right here puts you guys
in the identity of being human.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Absolutely, one hundred percent does that. And it's all about,
you know, making content for the average American to be
able to consume in a digestible way. I mean, they're
so so, so many different storylines that intersect and connect
and I mean story beads, and I just couldn't have
(02:33):
imagined that everything would come together in such a beautiful
way like this. But you're right, it's about humanizing these
athletes and it's beautiful to see it all on the
on the big screen. I'll tell you.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
One of the biggest shockers is the opening and it says,
Dick's Sporting Goods. I'm going, what w what does Dick
Sporting Goods have to do with this man? I shot there?
Speaker 2 (02:52):
I mean, listen, Dick's Sporting Goods. The reality is documentary filmmaking,
you know, is a difficult landscape to navigate, and so
to have a partner like Dick Sporting Goods who came
in trusted the project, you know, believed in it, and
then could you know, help us, help us, you know,
finish this thing and fund us throughout the process is
(03:13):
super crucial. They've been, They've been an amazing partner. And
listen that there, Dick Sporting Goods is all about the
power of sports changed lives, and that's what Adaptive is
is an example of that. And I mean, I'll tell
you a funny story. We were up against the budget
a little bit leading into the Paris Paralympic Games, and
the whole team collectively decided that we were going to
(03:33):
spend the entirety of the budget to film at the
Paralympic Games, just banking, banking on the sole fact that
if I were to win the gold medal, we would
then be able to get funding to finish it afterwards.
So I'm sitting I'm sitting there before my competition, thinking, man,
we put five plus years into this project, hundreds and
hundreds of people who put their blood, sweat and tears
(03:53):
but their careers on this project. And if I don't
deliver and win this gold medal, this doesn't show up
on peacock. And so there was nothing more motivating than that.
And thankfully, you know, thankfully I came through.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
There's something that is still living with me even today
when it comes to all three parts of this, and
I don't want to do a spoiler, but the thing is,
I'm going to say what what is still inside of me?
And then we can grow from there. But I don't
want to spoil it because I want other people to
have the same experience. Never never again, dude, you change me,
never again, you changed my life.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
I wow, I sincerely appreciate that, and I yeah, I mean,
I'll share a little bit of it for you know,
for the audience, because I you know, I've said it
publicly before and they'll get to see the real behind
the scenes of it. But you know, after I placed
fifth the Tokyo Paralympic Games, I was so upset by
coming so close to the podium that I set the
(04:44):
screensaver on my phone as a photo of the metalist
that beat me with the words never again, and then
that motivated me twenty times over. Every time I open
up my phone, I see that photo of the guys
that beat me and motivated me to to go try
to get my revenge at the next Paralympic Games. So
I really appreciate you saying that, and yeah, I mean
(05:07):
truly the you know, that's all pictured, that's all pictured inadaptive.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
See this is more than just sports fans. This right
here is for the nurses and the doctors at the hospital.
This is for bankers, This is for grocery store employees.
When they watch something like this and they realize that
they're facing those walls every dang day. You know, take
a picture never again, and it really it serves as
that fuel.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Absolutely, you're absolutely right. This can be applied to anything.
The reality is the person who wants it more will
get it. It's as simple as that. How badly do
you want your dreams? How badly do you want to
change your situation? How badly do you want to progress?
Take that photo, remember those moments that motivate you, and
write never again on it, and there I can promise
(05:53):
you there will be nothing more motivating than that.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Another powerful quote. What people don't know is what it's
like to be, Oh my god, hit me in the gut.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
One hundred percent. You're right, you know, one hundred percent.
You know, people have a lot of opinions nowadays. It's
super easy to get caught up and uh, you know
what other people perceive of you. But if they've never
been in your shoes. Then how can they you know,
how can they even have an opinion to begin with?
So you're absolutely right, and you know that was a
great quote. You're absolutely right.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
We get to see your birth and and that to me,
I cried like a baby. I did, because I mean,
oh my god, you're serious. Oh my god, did you
see your mother? I want to hold my baby. I
want to hold my baby. And I just I just
wanted to climb through that screen and say we please
let her hold her baby, and and oh my god,
it's so special.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Oh thank you so much, thank you so so much. No, sincerely,
I mean, if you want to watch a masterclass in parenting,
this documentary is also for you, right watch Adaptive on
Peacock because my mom is the most amazing person I've
ever met my entire life. And she she literally shows
you all what it's like to raise a child with
(07:03):
a disability and how to instill confidence in them and
how to not let them or treat to those insecurities.
If you literally want to know how to raise a
child with confidence, I mean, my mom doesn't that in
the doc You're absolutely.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Right, Oh my god. And then each time that she
appears on the screen, you get deeper and deeper into
her storyline as well. It's almost like having you know,
the act or the talent beside you. Is is the
you know, he's going to get a trophy for for
just being there as the you know, the assistant.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Absolutely, no, my mom is pivotal. I mean genuinely, I'm
not the person I am today without her. And uh
and it's all shown. It's all shown in the doc
and it's I mean genuinely masterclass and parenting on her end.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
Please do not move. There's more with ez refrec coming
up next. The name of the documentary on Paramount is adaptive.
We're back with ez refrec All. Right, without spoiling it again,
I'm just gonna set it up, okay, but but you know,
the first god, man, he didn't make it. Second attempt,
didn't make it that third attempt, and then something happens.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Right, I mean listen, Uh, you know we won't be
won't spoil it for the listeners because they you know,
they got to go check it out and watch it
on their own because they'll definitely enjoy it. But but no,
this doc is about It's about the lows, the losses,
the failure, they'll almost making it. The laughter, the tears,
the anger, and then all of that building to the
(08:29):
opportunity to deliver on gold. It's as simple as that,
and so right there's cliffhangers, the edge of the sea.
It's just it's an epic, epic journey, and I'm so
glad that you enjoyed it. I really am.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
One of the things that I would love to be
a fly on the wall are the let's say only
eleven to twelve year olds or even fifteen year olds
that that inspire and influence the other students in their schools.
And when we get to see you standing there firm, strong, confident,
you've got courage, and you're sharing a positive message, that
to me is a message to the younger generation be heard.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Absolutely. My message to the younger generation is dream big, genuinely. Genuinely.
Most people set goals that are too easy to accomplish.
They accomplish those goals, and then in turn, they forfeit
a ton of the potential just because they didn't believe
that they were capable of war. Always always believe you're
capable of war. Dream big. Set the most audacious, unrealistic,
(09:29):
statistically unlikely goal, and then pursue it with everything you.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Have being on National TV. My God, Ellen degenerous, and
it just continued to grow and grow and grow beyond that.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
Yeah, absolutely, I mean I had the opportunity to be
on Allen, I had the opportunity to do a lot
of these sort of bigger, you know, bigger shows and
get the opportunity to continue to hope, hopefully, influence the
way the world sees disability. That's what it's about, That's
what we need to do. That's what I feel I
was put on this earth for. It's to normalize disability,
be an example of what's possible as an amputee. And
(10:04):
you know, I got the opportunity to start doing that
very young, once again because of my mom.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
You know, during your process of personal growth and reaching
out there further and further, did you ever find yourself
on the sidelines doing what I call the silent wolf
in other words, when I was in martial arts the
a third degree black belt, what happened to is that
my master would have me stand on the sidelines. He says,
you will learn more here about what you're doing wrong
than out there. And I feel that in watching you,
(10:29):
you know, lay claim to all of your victories, and
I would sit there and say, I know he's got
to be watching from the sidelines. He really is a
silent wolf.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah, I mean literally, you have to sort of put
yourself in that position and watch from the sidelines, take
a step back. That's the only way you're going to
really grow. Sometimes you have to be objective about things,
and so, you know, in a sport that's hyper emotional,
like you saw, right, hyper hyper emotional. I mean I
cried how many times as I cry this documentary, right,
But the reality is you have to be objective sometimes,
(10:58):
and you would have to you know, tough skin, and
you have to be able to walk through the fire,
and you've got to be able to hold your head
up high. And so that's what I feel like I
had to be able to do through the adversity, through
the failure, through the learnings to ultimately, you know, reach
the ultimate peak.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And the discipline the mornings when it was cold outside,
when when you had to be out there no matter what,
how did you bust through that wall? Because we do
live in an age where a lot of people just say, Okay,
I'll get to it tomorrow, not you buddy.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Right, exactly. You can't. You can't. I mean listen, the
same discipline and the same motivation that you guys will
see in this documentary to all the listeners. You know,
the same discipline you'll see in Adaptive can be applied
to truly anything in life, right early mornings, getting good sleep,
recovering properly, optimizing the right things in your life. Right,
(11:50):
all those fine, little small details that you might not
think make that big of a difference, you know, one off,
but then when you add them all up together, it
makes a really, really big difference to the journey of
a high achiever is all seen on Peacock. And I
hope that people can watch this documentary knowing that whatever
(12:10):
they're doing, whatever they're going after in life, whatever goals
they have, this is a framework of how to accomplish
your goals, and it's literally portrayed for the world to see.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Do you keep a d frag journal where you ask
the questions and then question your own answers.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
You know, that's a good that's a good. Uh, that's
a good question. I've never actually done one of those before,
but I do have a journal which I'm constantly writing in. Constantly. Uh,
you know, manifesting through and uh, you know, writing down
what I aim to accomplish, and then in a way
we do that because I'm surrounded by such an amazing
team that we're constantly you know, we're constantly adapting to
(12:49):
adversity and then questioning the way we're adapting to it.
And then at at the you know, the expense of
just consistent, consistent, you know, growth, which will continue to occur.
But you're absolutely right, Well, you're always questioning your you know,
your responses to situations that comes up to make sure
that you're on the right track.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Yeah. Yeah, I'm glad that you brought up the people
around you because in my notes here I go that
each of one of you on the documentary, you all
have one thing in common. You have to trust the
people that surround you.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
You have to you have to trust the people around
you because it's not a solo journey, right. I might
be competing at the Games as a solo athlete, but
there are hundreds, if not thousands of people who have
made an impact in me to get to that point.
And I have to trust my coaches, I have to
trust my processists. I have to trust my physical therapists.
I have to trust my strength and conditioning coach. I
have to trust my sports psychologists. I mean, think about
(13:44):
how many people who although at the end of the
day am the one lining up mono el mono next
to these guys, the reality is to get me in
that position, I've had to trust the work of my
entire team, and so learning to be a leader in
that sense and learning to, you know, I'll activate all
of my team members to be the best versions of themselves.
This is something that I've had to figure out as well.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Here's a life coach lesson to be learned. You couldn't celebrate,
and the reason why is because you had that, you know,
a higher purpose, and that was the world record exactly.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
So at the World Championships when I won my first
world title, my coach didn't let me celebrate until we
broke the world record. And yeah, he didn't let me
celebrate till we broke the world record. And I think that's,
you know, a testament to the type of ambition that
everybody needs to have. I was, I won my first
world title, but literally wasn't allowed to celebrate until I
(14:38):
broke the world record. And so the same logic can
be applied to anything anyone is doing at any point
in life. This documentary is an example of that. Adaptive
is an example of that. Have those big dreams, have
that high high ambition, and then don't stop at anything,
don't get complacent at all until you make that a reality.
And if you're looking for more, you know, motivation or ferration,
(15:00):
literally turn on Peacock and you'll find it.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Once you hit that accomplishment. I love the fact that
the first person you went to was Mom.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Yeah, I mean listen, Mom was there since day one.
Mom built me into the man I am she you know,
she deserves every bit of that that gold metal hug.
You're absolutely right. Wow.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
And then when you teamed up with Roderick Townsend, I
mean we're talking about the best high jumper in the
era of the of the era, and it's like, what
the heck, man, when were the chances you would get
this opportunity?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah? Very special. I mean listen, I think things come
together and sometimes you have to just you know, follow
the path of a universe in a way. And that's
what that was. I felt like him and I coming
together for me to get the opportunity to train with
him one of the greatest high jumpers of all time,
and you know, have him be my coach. You know,
(15:52):
he was always an older brother kind of figure to me,
but then really, you know, it went to the next level.
And then you know, with him by my side, we
we made history. You know.
Speaker 1 (16:02):
One of the relatable moments in this and there's no
way in hell that I'm going to be the only
one that's going to relate with what goes on inside
this documentary, and that is is that. You know, when
I was in my teens, I was I wanted to
be a professional bowler, and I was doing very well
with the AGBC. But guess what happened, dude. The girlfriend.
The girlfriend got in the way of me setting my goals.
And when you talk about yes, I swear to god,
(16:23):
I swear to.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
God, how did that happen?
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Thought, Well, it's because I was I was paying attention
to her. And I remember one of my teammates comes
up and says, dude, dude, get your mind on the game,
get it off her. So I could really relate with that.
When when you bring that into the documentary, I'm going, oh,
I've been there.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Yeah, you're absolutely right. Now I was in a position
where I felt like if I had a girlfriend, it
would it would get me further away from my goals.
And you know, I was sort of blocking myself off
from the feeling of love, which in many ways can
be some of the most beautiful emotions you'll ever experience.
And so I blocked that off for a while. And
then you know, I'm not going to spoil too much,
(17:04):
but in the doc, you know, I ended up end
up finding my person and so you uh, you know,
you get to see that p trae. So listen once again.
Like you love sports, you love entertainment, adaptive is for you.
You love storytelling, you love good stories. Adaptive is for you.
If you love love, if you love romance, you want
to see how a world class athlete ends up, you know,
(17:25):
falling in love, Adaptive is for you. So this sort
of you know, the average American will find, uh, you know,
find what they'd love in this project, and and that's
super exciting.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Well, and then listener needs to understand when you begin
this this journey and you start watching the first episode,
do not be shocked that you're you're gonna jump right
into the second and then you're to go right into
the third and you're it's not gonna be one of
those where gona say I'm not getting my time back.
That's baloney. What you got was a full education.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I love it. I love it, I love it. I'm
so glad you you binged all three episodes and felt
so strong and enjoyed it as much as you did.
I mean, that's that means a lot to me. We
put we put a lot into this project. And to
see the world receive it the way they have, the
critics receive it the way they have, and then to
hear you say this, of course, it's you know, very special.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Now answer, I'm going to make a prediction, and you
can slap me upside the head if you want to.
I think you're going to get into making documentaries yourself,
because there's something about these stories that really do empower everybody.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
Absolutely, No, that's probably a very accurate prediction. That is
the plan, you know, That's what we want to do,
is we want to continue to tell these stories. We
want to tell them on the you know, the biggest
of stages, the brightest of lights, and make sure that
the world is you know, is hearing how how amazing
these stories truly are Wow, where.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
Can people go to find out more about you? Answer?
Because I want them to know who you are.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
I appreciate it. I mean, the best way to get
to know me is you know, any social media. My
username is ezrafrect my full name. I post full time
content there. But then, truly, if you want to get
to know the most behind the scenes in depth, look
in my life. You want to know who I am
at my core, make sure to extream adaptive on Peacock.
Check it out. I hope you all enjoy it because
(19:12):
clearly you know, clearly you know the world has been
receiving it well, thankfully, thank God.
Speaker 1 (19:17):
Wow, please come back to this show anytime in the future.
The door is always going to be open for you.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
Dude, absolutely absolutely, Thank you so much, my friend, this
is this is an amazing time.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Will you be brilliant today?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Okay, thank you you too,
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