Chris Nikic Becomes First Person With Down Syndrome To Complete An Ironman

Chris Nikic raised his arms with about 50 yards remaining in his 140.6 mile journey to complete Ironman Florida, becoming the first person with Down Syndrome to complete an Ironman. The 21-year-old completed the course in 16 hours, 46 minutes, and took his place in the record books. This Ironman had trouble walking up until he was four years old and had open-heart surgery at five months old, yet there he was late Saturday doing the unthinkable.

Nikic swam 2.4 miles, biked 112 miles and ran 26.2 miles. "The opportunities you have created for others around the world through this journey you embarked upon, is immeasurable. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your remarkable life story and we can’t wait to see what you achieve next," the official Ironman Facebook page wrote about Nikic's accomplishment.

"IRONMAN. Goal set and achieved. Time to set a new and BIGGER Goal for 2021. Whatever it is the strategy is the same," Nikic wrote on Instagram. "1% Better every day. YES, I did the work but I had angels helping me. God surrounded me with Angels. Best part of all. New family and friends. All about awareness and inclusion.

"Awareness for Down Syndrome and Special Olympics. Inclusion for all of us with all of you. I’m sorry for not responding personally to all your messages. It’s amazing but overwhelming because I got 33K new followers and messages since yesterday. I will try and catch up. If you want to support my mission for Down Syndrome and Special Olympics go to my website www.ChrisNikic.com because 100% of the donations go to my charities. I achieved my goal and now I want to help others like me."

Chris's father came up with the 1% better philosophy that has turned into a mindset that the 21-year-old Maitland, Florida native now shares on the inspirational speaking circuit and on his website where he raises money for a variety of charities.

“The doctors and experts said I couldn’t do anything,” Nikic told the Orlando Sentinel. “So I said, ‘Doctor! Experts! You need to stop doing this to me. You’re wrong!’”