A former University of Arkansas track star whose leg was amputated while preparing for the Olympics will speak at Fayetteville High School on Tuesday, according to the school district.
John Register is set to speak to the school’s junior class in the high school’s performing arts center at 10 a.m.
Register was an All-American track athlete for the Razorbacks who qualified in hurdles events in the 1988 and 1992 Olympics, before mis-stepping over a hurdle while preparing for the 1996 Olympics. The injury eventually led to the amputation of his leg.
After 18 months of rehabilitation, Register competed on the 1996 paralympic team as a swimmer. He was then fitted for a prosthesis and earned a silver medal in the long jump at the 2000 Paralympic Games.
Register now works as an inspirational speaker and was chosen by the university as the Arkansas Alumni Association’s 2014 Johnson Fellow. He will be on campus Tuesday through Thursday to share his story with UA students, in addition to the Fayetteville High students he will visit Tuesday.
