Seeing Failure as an Opportunity

When Hunter Woodhall set up for his race at the Paris World Para Athletics Championships in 2023, he was elated. Over a decade of hard work had finally paid off, bringing the track athlete to one of the world’s biggest stages. But when the starting gun was fired, one of his prosthetics fell off. Just like that, in a single second, it was all over.

“I had made a mistake. I knew no one else on the planet knew how much sweat and work it had taken to even get to that moment,” Woodhall said on Friday, Jan. 31, as he addressed listeners at Calvin University’s January Series.

His sense of defeat was crushing, but it was also clarifying, he said. He learned that success isn’t about avoiding failure. 

“You either win, or you learn,” said Woodhall, noting that he realized that ultimately it was his own work ethic and mindset that needed to change.

Running Forward: Overcoming Obstacles

Born with fibular hemimelia, a congenital condition that affects the ability of one’s legs and feet to develop in utero, Woodhall had both of his legs amputated when he was 11 months old. 

Walking with prosthetics allowed him mobility, but they were “heavy and clunky,” he said. He could walk but couldn’t run. As a child, learning to ride a bike was frustrating, he added. But his mother’s advice stuck with him: “You just need to do it again.”

At age 10, Woodhall received his first running prosthetics. They were great, he said. Sprinting around the hospital parking lot, he felt true freedom for the first time, he recalled. Yet even though he loved sports, Woodhall said he often felt that he was being held back from being able to do things in the same way as his older brothers and cousins.

Football coaches benched him, afraid of potential risks of injury on the field by his teammates. It wasn’t until he found track and field, said Woodhall, that he discovered a literal open path. There were no excuses for coaches to ignore him; there was only the stopwatch. He thrived, and in his senior year Woodhall became a top-five high school sprinter in the United States.

Yet, despite his speed, college recruiters hesitated, said Woodhall. University coaches weren’t sure how to support an amputee athlete. The glass ceiling was real. Unable to take no for an answer, however, Woodhall worked with his high school coaches to see why university coaches hesitated to recruit him. And once he found out their hesitations, he worked to fix them – to prove he was just as able to compete at the collegiate level as anyone else.

It worked. Woodhall became the first para-athlete to receive a Division I scholarship for track and field, and he went on to run at the University of Arkansas.

Moving Onward and Upward

Woodhall didn’t just run—he studied marketing, minored in communications and finance, and even launched a clothing company in college. Balancing academics, athletics, and business wasn’t easy, but preparation and perseverance made it possible.

Woodhall’s perseverance was also what helped him through his devastating fall in 2023, he said, adding that one thing that touched him was when, after the race finished, his competitors rushed over to lift him up. Their kindness reminded him that greatness isn’t just about winning, he said—it’s about lifting others too.

So Woodhall determined to put all of his effort into training for the Paris 2024 Olympics. He changed his diet, making sure he ate healthy, nutritious food and drank plenty of water. He dedicated himself to working on his sleep hygiene. And, slowly, day by day and month by month, he felt himself improving, he said.

Woodhall’s message to January Series listeners was clear: “Where you start doesn’t determine where you finish. Failure is simply an opportunity to learn.”

Beyond working toward his goals at the Paralympics, Woodhall said he also learned to lean into his support system. “It’s so important to be able to communicate when you’re having a tough day,” he said. Only when he could communicate how he was feeling was he able to truly excel and work toward his long-term goals, he said.

And success did finally come for him at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, where he won gold in his division of the 400-meter dash and bronze in the 4 x 100-meter relay.

Woodhall emphasized again and again that failure isn’t a reason to quit. It’s a reason to grow. Every day is a chance to get better.

“One step at a time, just keep moving forward,” he said.