Daniel Romanchuk, 21-year-old with 6-10 wingspan, wins back-to-back NYC Marathon wheelchair races

Daniel Romanchuk became the first American to win the New York City Marathon wheelchair division two years in a row on Sunday, capturing his fifth major race in 2019. He won with a time of 1 hour, 37 minutes and 24 seconds.

The 21-year-old was born with spina bifida, a "birth defect that occurs when the spine and spinal cord don't form properly," according to the Mayo Clinic. He also has a 6-foot-10 wingspan — wider than swimming icon Michael Phelps. 

Romanchuk's coach, Adam Bleakney, told The Wall Street Journal that Romanchuk's wingspan gives him an advantage because he can use a 17-inch-diameter hand ring (the device athletes grip for propulsion during race) as opposed to the 15-inch one most other elite racers use.

"That allows him to have a very high max velocity," Bleakney told the newspaper. "That's paramount in winning in our sport."

Romanchuk again had to fend off Swiss foe Marcel Hug, edging him by one second -- just like he did in the previous NYC Marathon. 

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“It was a very tight finish,” said Romanchuk, via Reuters. “As it got later in the race, there’s just more and more people catching up and making a bigger group, and then things got a little bit more tactical.”

Last year at age 20, Romanchuk won the New York City Marathon with a time of 1:36:21 to become the youngest man to claim the title. Shortly after, Romanchuk became the youngest to win the Boston Marathon and the first American to win in 26 years. By September, Romanchuk had secured a World Marathon Majors title for the most points won over a year — the first American to accomplish the feat. 

At the New York City Marathon, Romanchuk won $25,000, a five-fold increase from last year, according to The New York Times.

The 21-year-old also has qualified for the Paralympic Games in Tokyo next summer as a result of his Chicago Marathon time (1:30:26) in October.