Bethel Park man, Rostraver native competes in Paralympic Triathlon in Tokyo this week

Eric McElvenny never shied away from a challenge.

This week, the 38-year-old Bethel Park father of three will face a new one. The Rostraver native will take to an international stage as a member the U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team in Tokyo.

Like the Summer Olympic competitions that wrapped up there Aug. 8, the Paralympics — which start today — will take place in empty stadiums, pools and tracks. McElvenny’s family and friends will be tuned to the Olympic channel at 5:30 p.m. Friday to follow his progress in the race that will be broadcast live from Tokyo, where it will be held Saturday morning.

“I have a wide network of supporters, and we’re all pushing forward on this journey together. That’s what makes it so great,” he told the Tribune-­Review last week from the team’s training center in Hawaii.

McElvenny, a 2001 Belle Vernon High School graduate, always loved sports. He played football and baseball in high school. He later played rugby at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he graduated in 2006.

In 2011, he lost his right leg below the knee when he stepped on an IED while on patrol as a Marine infantry officer in Afghanistan. It was his third tour of duty.

Athletics again played a big part of his journey of recovery.

Rather than playing team sports, McElvenny challenged himself to begin training for the Ironman Triathlon. He also embarked on a new journey as a motivational speaker as he began training for what is considered one of the most grueling events in the sports world.

Pain and patience

An Ironman competition consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile cycling race and 26.2-mile run. The average finishing time is 12 hours and 49 minutes. McElvenny, who has completed eight Ironman races, has posted a personal best of 10 hours and 20 minutes.

Along the way, he learned patience.

“I’ve always had the ability to push through pain, but I feel like I struggle with patience,” he said. “I knew this was going to be hard and painful, but the biggest thing was keeping my prosthesis fitting right.”

During training, his body would change, and it was always critical that the prosthesis fit well. McElvenny learned to listen to his body when he suffered three staph infections in four months after insisting he would push through with what began as a small blister.

“At one point, my doctor suggested I find another sport,” he said.

He and his wife Rachel, a Naval Academy classmate, have three children: Lupe, Elise and William. They are among his most ardent supporters, along with his parents, Michael and Susan McElvenny, who still live in Rostraver.

When he is not training, McElvenny is cheering for Lupe and Elise, who play softball, and William, who plays soccer.

He began thinking about the Paralympics three years ago when a friend said his speed would be a great match for the event.

While the Ironman is about endurance and powering through the pain, the Paralympic Triathlon is more of sprint: a half-mile swim, 12.4-mile bike race and 3.2-mile run.

The difference required McElvenny to change his training routine and focus on more intense interval training.

The international teams of parathletes, who will be competing in Tokyo from Tuesday through Sept. 5, include individuals with a wide range of physical and intellectual challenges who compete against others with similar challenges. There are 17 members of the U.S. Paratriathlon Team, including three guides for visually impaired athletes.

McElvenny is competing against athletes who have below-the-knee or above-the-elbow amputations.

He spent much of the past year training and competing in official Paralympic events around the world to rack up the points required to make the U.S. team.

He cut it close.

“In my qualifying race. I beat a guy from Luxembourg by one second,” he said. “Now, I just want to finish a second faster than the guy who places fourth in Tokyo.”