Sam Bosco poses with her bronze medal at the Parapan American Games Lima 2019 on Aug. 30, 2019 in Lima, Peru.
Two-time Paralympic medalist Sam Bosco earned her third medal of the Parapan American Games Lima 2019 on Friday, bringing home hardware in both road and track cycling.
But cycling is far from the only thing the 32-year-old spends her days doing.
Aside from her training, Bosco (Upland, California) keeps her schedule very busy. She is also earning her master’s degree in accounting, helping her husband with his bicycle-fitting business, Bosco Bike Fits and doing graphic design work for clients and friends.
“My husband jokes that I don't know how to sit still. If I'm not on my bike, I'm taking classes,” Bosco said. “If I'm not taking classes, I'm doing some graphic design work, or posting on social media for Bosco Bike Fits, or studying for an exam, or trying to journal and record this whole experience.”
Her husband’s business helps fit people to their bikes, making them more comfortable, aerodynamic and customized. He even fit Bosco’s teammate, Clara Brown (Falmouth, Maine).
“Outside of cycling, my main focus is making sure that my husband's business is successful and that he's successful,” Bosco said. “He's helped me chase my dreams and has been a part of it all. I want to help him chase his dreams, have him fulfill those and be a part of those too.”
It isn’t always easy to have such a full plate. Bosco said it can be difficult to be away from her family when she is competing in international events like these.
“It's just difficult, with the training load and the availability, to be able to go see my family or have a vacation with my husband,” Bosco said. “There's always some underlying thing going on that I'm trying to juggle. I'm just trying to stay at a competitive level.”
She has remained competitive to say the least.
Bosco earned two golds on the track in Lima, winning the women’s 500-meter time trial C1-5 and the women’s 3,000m pursuit C4-5. She won her third medal as road cycling competition began, capturing bronze in the women’s time trial C1-5 on the San Miguel Circuit, and has one final race on Sunday.
“It'd be nice to have four events here and leave with four medals,” Bosco said. “But the road races are so unpredictable that it could be anybody's game. I'm just looking forward to having fun and representing Team USA professionally and to the best of my abilities.”
Bosco said that her life and skill set outside of cycling has benefited her ability to market herself as a professional athlete as well.
“It lets me be more real and connected, and I think that shows in marketing myself on social media,” Bosco said. “I think it's super helpful to show all sides of who I am, and not just the accolades and times on the bike. I like having people see me, not just Sam the cyclist.
This is her second trip to the Parapan American Games, as Bosco raced for Team USA in Toronto four years ago as well. But she said her experiences in Lima have been something else.
“This experience has been about so much more than the competition. All of the friendships and connections outweigh the medals,” Bosco said. “To get a personal record in an event that I didn't think I would ever medal internationally in was very surreal. I keep using that word but I don't have a better way of putting it into words. I will definitely cherish this event and the people, take them all back home with me, and relive those moments on the days when it's not so easy.”