HENDERSON — From a two-time high school seated shot put state champion to aspiring Paralympian, Cason Weatherton is making his mark in the adaptive athletics world.

The 20-year-old from Henderson, who earned two golds and a silver in the wheelchair shot put event at the UIL Track and Field State Championships over his high school career and just completed his freshman year at UT Arlington, has his sights set on the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles.

To climb there, he’s dedicated the past few months to making it to the USATF Para National Championships.

This year’s championship is a few weeks away, and qualifying will take a standout performance at the Hartford Nationals coming up July 11-17 in Grand Rapids, Mich. Weatherton has qualified to Hartford for the second time and is set to compete in the seated shot put, discus and javelin as well as para powerlifting. Last year, he won gold in the U20 division shot put, bronze in the discus and set a new national para powerlifting record in the 88 kg. weight class.

It’s been a year of motivating new challenges for Weatherton, now that he’s a year out of high school and regularly competing against seasoned adult athletes at meets like the Texas ParaSport Games in San Antonio and the Desert Challenge Games at Arizona State University this spring. Both competitions are sanctioned by Move United, an official affiliate of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, and serve as qualifying meets to the Hartford Nationals, the largest and longest-running national sport championship event for athletes with a physical disability, visual impairment, and/or intellectual disability.

Nearly 400 athletes participated in the 2024 Nationals, the 67th year of competition, in events that included not just track and field but archery, paratriathlon, shooting, swimming, and wheelchair tennis.

“Before I started college I kind of hit a stump with all my sports. I wasn’t really improving and I was actually declining from what I would usually throw. I wouldn’t be throwing my best,” said Weatherton, currently back in Henderson as he trains for Hartford. “But months ago I started doing better than what I’m normally doing. I’m excited to actually get my personal best in.”

Working with a new coach has been a boon. Jasmine Burrell of San Diego State University, who specializes with adaptive seated and ambulatory throwers, has been virtually coaching Weatherton for a few weeks. The tougher competition is also fueling him. He’s even gone up against athletes with Paralympic medals.

“When I had my meet in Arizona, that was my first time going. I went up against the top two people in my division and that was definitely a humbling experience for me. Because in my head I’m the best. And then I went up against them and they completely obliterated me,” laughed Weatherton. “But now I’m improving myself every week. It’s a good thing. I mean, it’s a bad thing because I have a lot of work to do, but now it’s a good thing because I have motivation to push myself harder than what I’ve been doing.”

Weatherton also enjoyed expanding his track and field portfolio with discus and javelin, events he didn’t compete in during high school because they weren’t available as University Interscholastic League (UIL) wheelchair division track and field events.

“Discus is actually my favorite. I prefer discus over shot put,” said Weatherton. “Javelin I recently started because I found out there wouldn’t be discus throw for my division in the Paralympics. So I would just be doing it for Nationals and the championship with that being as far as I would go. But I could make it to the Paralympics in javelin if I was to meet the standard. It was a challenge, at first. I’m still getting used to it.”

Weatherton’s right leg was amputated at the hip while he was still in his mother’s womb due to Amniotic Band Syndrome. The rare condition occurs when the lining of the amniotic sac ruptures during pregnancy and string-like strands of tissue get tangled around the fetus. The tissue had wrapped around his leg and both hands, and Weatherton came into the world with one leg, a right hand with half a pinky and a left hand with two conjoined fingers.

The physical disability never stopped Weatherton from being involved in school extracurriculars, and with the encouragement of his mom, Shalondra Weatherton, and one of his Henderson High School coaches at the time, Kyle Farrell, he started powerlifting as a sophomore. When they learned that UIL offered wheelchair division track and field events, Weatherton and Farrell decided to try the shot put. A few months later, Weatherton had a silver medal around his neck at the UIL State Championships. He kept it up, improving his distances with diligent training and returning to state to claim the championship title back-to-back, while adding the wheelchair 100-meter dash to his events. Coaching Weatherton in his senior year was Justin Arnold, and he keeps in touch with both coaches as well as former teammate Lane Meador, another adaptive athlete who came up behind him and will graduate in 2026.

Weatherton’s high school athletic career was a groundbreaking one, as he’s the first adaptive athlete that’s come through the Henderson school district. His coaches were learning the ins and outs of adaptive track and field along with him. Out of East Texas, there were so few other adaptive athletes that Weatherton and Meador were often the only ones competing in district, area and regional meets. They’d finally see a full field at the state championships. The experience inspired Weatherton to study kinesiology at university to become a physical trainer while pursuing his career as a professional athlete. Weatherton wants to give back to his community—to bring more resources, information and opportunities back to East Texas for young, aspiring adaptive athletes.

The support from family, coaches, friends and the overall community of Henderson has meant a lot to him. The Weathertons held a “Cason’s Journey to Nationals” fundraiser cookout in late June to raise money for his travel and equipment expenses and entry fees, and Henderson turned out for them.

“I was honestly shocked by how many people came by to donate and everything. But I don’t know why I’m surprised because the love that’s been shown to me for my entire life has really just been unmatched,” said Weatherton. “I’m truly grateful for the community that I grew up in. It’s a good feeling knowing that my people got my back, you know?”

“It just blesses our heart to see the community come together and rally behind him, to push him as he represents the hometown,” added Shalondra. “Because he’s paving the way for other adaptive athletes that are coming up behind him… They kind of jump started it. Now being able to show other kids, whether they’re able-bodied or adaptive, that anything is possible. All you’ve got to do is believe in yourself… It just makes it that much more humbling and exciting for him to go and represent Henderson. Not only Henderson, but the surrounding towns that reach out to support him, keep him uplifted and in good spirits.”

Anyone who’d like to sponsor Weatherton can donate to CashApp account $h1997, through Zelle at account 903-658-2021 or checks made out to the Weatherton Adaptive Sports Fund. There are plans for a pick-a-date calendar fundraiser and Shalondra can be contacted at 903-658-2021 for more information and a mailing address for checks.

Weatherton’s field events at the Hartford Nationals are Sunday, July 13 at Calvin University’s Gainey Athletic Complex in Grand Rapids. He competes in para powerlifting on Tuesday, July 15 at the Mary Free Bed YMCA.

The USATF Para National Championships are July 31-Aug. 2 at the renowned Hayward Field at the University of Oregon.