Sailing Gold Medalist Has Died at 42

[TaoJones]

Nick Scandone was a sailing enthusiast and racer who, with his crew Maureen McKinnon-Tucker, took the gold medal in the SKUD-18 class at the 2008 Paralympics last September, died January 2, 2009 after a long fight against ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease. At 42, he had already outlived the average ALS sufferer by two years.

A well-respected, world-class sailboat racer in his 20s and early 30s, he had been diagnosed with ALS at 36, but his love of racing never faltered. So he and Ms. McKinnon-Tucker, a paraplegic from Massachusetts, teamed up in the SKUD-18 class because they could control the vessel using only their hands.

To read the rest of the story of these exceptional sailors, go to:

Nick Scandone, Paralympic gold-medal sailor with ALS, leaves legacy at 42 - Los Angeles Times

TaoJones

[Christian Van H]

Nick is a hero, plain and simple. There is no better story than his to illustrate the power of will.