By Alisa Gershman
Many people within our communities have exceptional life journeys. All around us, everyone is walking a different path in life and striving to live life to its fullest. That is exactly what Raphael Misael is doing.
Born in the Philippines but bouncing around different states at a young age, Misael ended up in the Riverview area, where he graduated Riverview High School in 2013. He continued to find a home in several cities from New York to Seattle before finally settling in Los Angeles, California, to pursue a career as an independent music video director. While he had a fulltime job, climbing was always his passion.
proudly wears a medal he received for
his outstanding efforts in paraclimbing.
For his entire life, Misael has found comfort in finding different places in nature he could climb, which spurred his desire to learn more about the sport in 2022. However, his life came to a screeching halt that year when his mother was diagnosed with stage-four colon and liver cancer. Shortly after coming back to Florida to visit her, Misael broke his leg; that’s when the doctors discovered a tumor in his bones.
Forced to figure out his own health while also helping his mother, Misael eventually had to amputate his leg in order for him to survive. With the excruciating decision of how to go about the procedure at hand “climbing was the only thing on [his] mind.” After ending chemo and learning how to maneuver with a prosthetic, his dream of climbing became more attainable.
Spending days in the gym with his fiancé, Bhrielle, they both worked extremely hard, pushing their bodies and “[working] three times as hard just to keep up with everyone else.” With months of hard work from the pair and mentorship from national team climber Caleb Cowen, they both competed in climbing and paraclimbing competitions across the country, all leading up to the Paraclimbing World Cup this year in Austria.
After making Team USA by qualifying in nationals, Misael is now headed to Austria to compete and show his intense skillset. He also said, “Paraclimbing was just announced in the Paralympics, and they are taking 10 members for Team USA in 2028. … I have to make the team each year at nationals, and my goal is to keep moving up.”
In Austria, while many challenges presented themselves, he was able to compete against other world class athletes from 14 countries. Although he didn’t place as high as he would’ve liked due to a technicality, Misael said he is still grateful to have learned “about the high stakes and extreme level of talent required to compete on a world stage.”
With his entire life being shaken and many challenges thrown his way, Misael has risen from the ashes and truly perseveres in the face of hardship. He is not only an incredibly strong climber but a strong person as well through his battle with cancer. Many in the Riverview community are supporting his journey and can’t wait to see what he accomplishes on the world stage.
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