LI Man To Compete In Tokyo Paralympics: How To Watch Tonight

TOKYO, JAPAN — Mikey Brannigan, a graduate of Northport High School, is set to compete in the men's 1,500-meter race at the Paralympics in Tokyo. The race is scheduled to air Thursday around 9 p.m. on NBCSN.

Brannigan, 23, of Northport, will race in the T20 heat. He will be 1 of 14 runners competing for the gold in Tokyo, according to the Olympics website.

Brannigan, who has autism, won the same race at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"Mikey has worked so hard these past five years training and getting through the pandemic," his mother, Edie Smith Brannigan, told Patch. "There is so much he has had to fight through."

Physically, Mikey Brannigan had a two-inch growth spurt, his mother said. Emotionally, he had to endure the quarantining and isolation that came with the coronavirus pandemic. Brannigan also moved to Buffalo with his coach in March 2020 to train. It was his first time away from home.

"We are so proud of his perseverance and dedication to the sport and his ability to inspire other athletes and people with disabilities," Edie Smith Brannigan said. "In our eyes, he has already won. We love him beyond measure and we will support him through the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat."

More on Brannigan:

• Mikey Brannigan Gets Hero's Welcome at Northport Middle School
• Mikey Brannigan Documentary to Air on E:60
• Star Northport Runner Reveals Post-Graduation Plans
• Mikey Brannigan Named U.S. Paralympics Male Track Athlete of the Year
• WATCH: Mikey Brannigan Wins Gold at Paralympic World Championships
• Mikey Brannigan Brings Home Another Paralympics World Champs Medal