{"id":68640,"date":"2026-04-02T09:36:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=68640"},"modified":"2026-04-02T09:36:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:36:25","slug":"wolford-sport-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wolford-sport-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"How One Volunteer Gig Reminded Me What Sport Is Really For"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-large-font-size\">At a triathlon camp for athletes with disabilities, I saw people exceed their perceived limitations\u2014and bonded with fellow alums<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-cornell-red-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4f66d45612aaf80d2d77724f720f26a9\"><em>\u201cChime In\u201d comprises brief first-person essays by Cornellians. Do you have a topic in mind? Email us at <a href=\"&#x6d;a&#105;&#x6c;&#x74;&#x6f;&#58;c&#x6f;&#x72;nel&#x6c;&#x69;&#x61;ns&#x40;&#99;&#111;&#x72;&#110;&#101;&#x6c;&#x6c;&#x2e;&#101;&#x64;&#x75;\">&#x63;o&#114;&#110;&#x65;l&#x6c;&#x69;a&#x6e;s&#64;&#x63;o&#x72;&#x6e;&#101;&#x6c;&#108;&#x2e;&#x65;&#x64;&#117;<\/a>! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By <strong>Adam Wolford \u201914<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text alignwide has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">\u201cIt\u2019s just so freeing,\u201d she said, almost to herself. We were riding the bike course at a camp in Tampa run by the nonprofit <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/dare2tri.org\/\">Dare2Tri<\/a>. She was on a hand-powered cycle for the first time, with me pedaling alongside her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This woman had become disabled recently\u2014recently enough that she was still figuring out what her life looked like now. And here she was on a sunbaked Florida road, moving fast and freely, with a grin that seemed to surprise even her. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I didn\u2019t have a response; I just kept riding and let the moment be what it was.<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Adam Wolford wearing a blue Oxford shirt\" class=\"wp-image-69052 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-Wolford-headshot-A.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I was not attending the camp as an athlete, but as a volunteer. I was introduced to the Chicago-based Dare2Tri as a client of <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.planperfect.co\/\">PlanPerfect<\/a>, the platform I co-founded to help nonprofits plan and operate more effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Because of this, I knew its mission well: \u201cTo enhance the lives of individuals with physical disabilities and visual impairments by building confidence, community, health, and wellness through swimming, biking, and running.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But I\u2019d only ever seen it in planning documents and progress reports. Volunteering at the camp was my way of finally seeing the work in person. Little did I know I\u2019d also experience a deep Big Red connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"715\" height=\"402\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A.jpg\" alt=\"Adam Wolford in cap and gown at Cornell Commencement with his mother\" class=\"wp-image-69051\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A.jpg 715w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-608x342.jpg 608w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-304x171.jpg 304w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-152x85.jpg 152w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-592x333.jpg 592w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-296x166.jpg 296w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-632x355.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-316x178.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-400x225.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-200x112.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Adam-and-his-mother-at-graduation-2014-A-100x56.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 715px) 100vw, 715px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The author with his mom at Commencement in 2014.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The first person I connected with that day was Christine Shaw Palmquist \u201987, MBA \u201988, a program manager at Dare2Tri and a USA Triathlon Level III Elite Coach who served as a Team USA Paratriathlon Coach at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chris, who has spent decades expanding what\u2019s possible for adaptive athletes, was part of the fabric of the day. At some point between events, one of us mentioned Cornell. What followed was not a polite nod of recognition, but\u2014in true Big Red fashion\u2014a full, warm embrace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>What followed was not a polite nod of recognition, but\u2014in true Big Red fashion\u2014a full, warm embrace.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>As we laughed, she exclaimed, \u201cI knew I liked you for a reason!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I met visually impaired athlete Manahil Jafri \u201925, BS \u201924, shortly afterward. This was her first Dare2Tri camp and her first real step into the world of adaptive triathlon\u2014but you\u2019d never have known that from watching her work through the swim, bike, and run transitions with focus and composure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At some point, someone mentioned to me that Manahil also went to Cornell. After I approached her and asked her about her time on the Hill, we shared a similar embrace as I\u2019d had with Chris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Manahil Jafri running with a guide\" class=\"wp-image-69054\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-608x342.jpg 608w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-304x171.jpg 304w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-152x85.jpg 152w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-1184x666.jpg 1184w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-592x333.jpg 592w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-296x166.jpg 296w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-1264x711.jpg 1264w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-632x356.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-316x178.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-400x225.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A-100x56.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Manahil-and-her-guide-running-A.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Manahil Jafri \u201925, BS \u201924 (right), runs with a guide at the triathlon camp.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Three Cornellians at one camp in Florida, none of us previously knowing each other: a veteran coach who had given her career to building this world; a young athlete stepping into it for the first time; and a nonprofit tech founder who showed up thinking he was there to help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s an easy version of this story that\u2019s just about the fun coincidence of three alumni crossing paths 1,000 miles from Ithaca. And to a certain extent, it was that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text alignwide has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p>But what stayed with me wasn\u2019t just the Cornell connection, but also watching what was happening around me all day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Athletes who had been told, in one way or another, that certain things weren\u2019t available to them anymore\u2014speed, competition, the particular satisfaction of crossing a finish line\u2014discovered that the list was shorter than they\u2019d been led to believe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I think about that moment on the bike a lot more than I expected to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not because it was a big, dramatic revelation about accessible sport as a way of becoming free, but more because it wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Adam Wolford (right) at a triathlon training camp with Christine Shaw Palmquist (left) and Manahil Jafri (center).\" class=\"wp-image-69053 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Chris-Manahil-and-Adam-A.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><figcaption>Big Red grads (from left) Palmquist, Jafri, and Wolford.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It was just two people riding bikes in the Florida heat, one of them saying something true out loud, both of us just keeping pace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s what the day felt like from start to finish: ordinary people doing something that kept turning out to be more than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Engineering alum <strong>Adam Wolford \u201914<\/strong> is a technology founder focused on the intersection of strategy execution and AI support for nonprofits. He lives in Miami, FL.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>(All images provided.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Published April 2, 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At a triathlon camp for athletes with disabilities, I saw people exceed their perceived limitations\u2014and bonded with fellow alums<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":69140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"alumni_hub_syml_posts":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[639],"tags":[],"cornell_year_post":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-68640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-perspectives"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How One Volunteer Gig Reminded Me What Sport Is Really For - 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