Isaiah Christophe – The people’s champion

SIMONE J. SMITH

“Obstacles are put in your way to see if what you want is really worth fighting for!”

You may have heard the saying that, “One can only control his/her thoughts and actions.”  While it may sound a bit cliché, it is true when it comes to how you go about overcoming challenges that you face in your life. One of the first things you need to do is to shift your mind-set.

Now I want to be clear, overcoming does not necessarily have to mean that you get rid of your challenge completely. The challenge you are dealing with might be something that you’ll have to accept and learn to live with, and this week, I am thrilled to introduce a man who knows what it means to face challenges, overcome, and succeed.

Isaiah Christophe was born with Spina Bifida; it is a birth defect that occurs when the spine and spinal cord don’t form properly. It’s a type of neural tube defect. The neural tube is the structure in a developing embryo that eventually becomes the baby’s brain, spinal cord and the tissues that enclose them. Being born with Spina Bifida affected his ability to walk. When he was younger, he would use crutches as well and braces, but they became tedious for him, so he became more reliant on his wheelchair.

The first day that I met Isaiah, I was actually nervous to approach him. We were at an event together, but as soon as I saw him, I knew he had a story to tell, and I wanted to hear it. We ended up connecting on Instagram, and he graciously agreed to interview with me. 

“You can’t let a certain situation in your life stop you from achieving your goals. God put you here for purpose. I began to embody this in my early 20’s.”

“I was born at Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario. My dad proudly hails from Trinidad, and my mom is from St. Vincent,” Isaiah begins sharing with me.“My parents met in church, and I am their first-born. I was raised in a Christian church, and I have to say, it has always been easy for me to make friends.”

Isaiah admits to me that he has always been a troublemaker; apparently this is something that he picked up from his dad, who he says is also a troublemaker. I learned more about this throughout the interview as he had me howling the majority of the time.

“When I was younger, I realized that there were certain things that were not for me. My parents raised me in the church, and I really enjoyed sports. I started watching basketball, but I really enjoyed all sports. Sports became a mainstay in my life.”

Isaiah shared with me his training schedule; he reveals that he has always had a hectic schedule. “I train in the gym Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and I am at the track Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.  It is a lot, but it kept me focused and it has paid off.”

What Isaiah has been able to achieve is absolutely incredible; in 2001, he joined The Cruiser Sports for the Clinically Disabled, and in 2002, he started wheelchair basketball. 2003 was the year that he started the sport that would change his life forever: track and field.

“I was going to practice for three different sports. It was a lot for a while,” Isaiah admits.

In 2005, he made his first summer games in Saskatchewan, and came away with a Bronze Medal.

His first international event was in 2008 in New Jersey, at the World Junior Games. Here he came away with four Gold Medals and a Silver Medal. “I did the 100 metres, all the way up to the 5,000 metres.”

In 2009, he competed in Switzerland and came away with four Gold Medals.

“I made my second Canada Games Team in P.E.I, and there I came away with two Silver Medals and a Bronze Medal. It became a lot for me, with training and everything, so I decided to focus on track and field. I knew there would be more traveling opportunities with that.”

In 2011, he competed in the Parapan Games in Mexico, and came away with the Bronze Medal in the 100 metres. “I am most proud of this moment; it was challenging and I was racing against some serious competition.”

2013 was the year of the Canada Summer Games team in Quebec. Isaiah came away with a Silver Medal in the 200 metres, which was followed up with the Francophone Games in France, where he placed 5^th in the 400 metres.

2014 brought him to the United Kingdom, where he finished with a Bronze Medal in the 400 metres, and in 2015 at the Parapan Games in Toronto, he placed 5^th in the 100 metres.

“In 2017, I did something I had not done before; I competed at the Athletic World Championships in the United Kingdom. It was a good experience. It was a much larger crowd, and it was one of my most exhilarating experiences.”

2019 was a huge year for him; Isaiah won three Gold Medals at the Canadian Championships, and this was all before the pandemic hit, which halted his training and his traveling.

“It was tough to not be able to train with my teammates. We eventually went on Zoom, but it was not the same. When we were finally able to travel again, I trained in Barcelona, raced in Paris, raced in British Columbia, raced in Toronto and Quebec City. It has been a busy year for me.

Even though I’ve been racing all these years and have all these accomplishments, it could not have happened without the support of my family and friends, and of course my coaches and teammates. They help to keep me going. I also have to remind myself sometimes why I do what I do, and my ultimate goal, which is to represent Canada at the Paralympic Games (Paris 2024). Just grateful and blessed for the ability that God gave me to do what I’ve been doing for the past 19 years.

You have to work hard for what you want in life. You have to set goals, and figure out your strategies to achieve. I am so thankful for my life. I take every opportunity as a blessing. It could all be taken away from you just like that.”