SALINAS, Calif. -- A Salinas man who is legally blind is looking to make history on Saturday when he will compete in the Ford Ironman World Championship in Hawaii for the third time.Maverick Malech is a 42-year-old real estate sales agent who is affected by two blinding retinal diseases.Malech, whose vision is described as "looking through an out of focus camera," is competing to help raise funds for the Foundation Fighting Blindness, a national nonprofit organization that funds research to cure blinding retinal degenerative diseases.
Malech began training for triathlons shortly after being diagnosed with macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa in 1998 and completed his first two attempts at the race in 2004 and 2005.Malech will follow a lifeguard on a surfboard during the swimming portion to stay on track and will be provided a transition guide in between race components. During the rest of the race, Malech will compete unassisted.
