Bermuda’s premier wheelchair racer Jessica Lewis is set to launch her 2026 season next week, heading to Dubai for an intensive training camp and her first competitive outing of the year.
The four-time Paralympian—who finished fifth in the T53 100m at both the Paris 2024 Games and the 2025 World Championships in New Delhi—is using the trip to transition from a grueling "base season" of training into full race form. Under the guidance of coach Geoff Harris, Lewis is prioritizing technical refinement during these early months to build toward peak speed for the major championships later in the cycle.
A critical focus of the upcoming training block in the United Arab Emirates will be the integration of equipment modifications. Working out of her training base in Victoria, British Columbia, Lewis has been implementing changes to her custom-made racing chair—a specialized six-foot-long three-wheeled "rig" designed for the T53 classification.
These adjustments often involve fine-tuning the seating position to maximize power transfer and "punching" technique on the rims, where even a millimeter of difference can translate to significant gains in the 100m sprint. "I am excited to kick off this season," Lewis shared, noting that the "base season" of training has provided the perfect window to overhaul her equipment before the pressure of the global circuit intensifies.
The start of the 2026 season also marks a continuation of Lewis's partnership with Arch Capital Group Ltd., a Bermudian insurance firm that joined her support team in May 2025. The sponsorship has been described by Lewis as a "significant milestone" that provides the financial stability required to manage the high costs of international travel and elite equipment maintenance.
"Grateful to be a part of Team Arch," Lewis posted, emphasizing that their belief in her mission allows her to focus entirely on the track. The collaboration aligns with the athlete’s long-term "four-year cycle" strategy, which aims for a podium breakthrough at the LA 28 Paralympic Games.
As the fastest T53 racer in the Americas—having broken a 27-year-old record in 2024—Lewis remains Bermuda’s most decorated para-athlete. Her journey in Dubai next week represents the first step in a year that will test those new equipment changes against the world's elite.
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