GROVELAND, Fla. – Alex Pring’s story first made the news when he was a little boy.
Pring’s mother wanted to find a prosthetic for her son who was born missing most of his right arm. With the help of some student engineers at the University of Central Florida, he was gifted a 3D-printed one for free in 2014.
Then months later, the same volunteers at Limbitless Solutions, designed another “Ironman” themed arm that was presented to the 7-year-old by the actor Robert Downey Jr.
Pring is now a 15-year-old and headed into his sophomore year of high school. He and his family met with News 6 at their home in Groveland.
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“I don’t even remember being that small,” said Pring as he showed off part of the bionic arm that was signed by Downey. The encounter gave him the nickname “Iron Boy.”
“I don’t know if I’ll live up to the title, but I’m pretty close,” said Pring.
Pring describes his “long journey” as a “fun one.” Today, he’s overcoming the odds by playing football at South Lake High School.
“I have had to overcome so many things,” said Pring. “Whether it’s in the weight room, how to tackle, how to run. It’s like learning to walk again. It’s a lot.”
His hard work has earned him a reputation as a heavy hitter. He’s a linebacker who’s not just playing with one arm, he’s excelling on the football field.
“I have put in my work. I think I am putting in three times as much work as most people,” said Pring.
Pring says he’s learned to get into a rhythm at a typical practice.
“It’s easier the more you do it,” said Pring. “Like, say in the weight room. It was really hard for me because not having the other arm you couldn’t hold the other side. So, I learned a way to use dumbbells and bench. I work out still using bands, using my resources.”
Pring says other teams sometimes doubt what he can do, but he’s committed to showing them his talent firsthand.
“I hear a lot of, ‘I can’t believe you’ve done this,’” said Pring. “But then they see me on the field and see me do something the same as these (Division 1) athletes and it’s a switch for them.”
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Pring says he learned to love football through his father.
“The first day I was born I was wearing Florida Gator onesies,” said Pring. “I’ve just been growing up around football my entire life. It’s been my thing, me and him. We throw footballs around. We’ve talked about football. We watched football. Every single Saturday.”
Pring’s family will tell you themselves they have just learned to make things work. His mother, Alyson, told News 6 how her son got his start playing.
“He never really talked about playing sports, and then all the sudden he wanted to do flag football,” she said. “My husband went out and they were playing around. He was like, ‘I like this, and I get to hit people? This is fun!’”
“This is just what fit. It made him feel super comfortable. His teammates are like family.”
Pring says she is proud of her son, and the person he is growing into.
“I’ve always taught him to be who you want to be,” said Pring.
For Alex, it’s what he wants to do that makes him who he is. And he’ll keep doing it because being his best is the best he can do.
“I have known one thing and that’s be successful,” said Pring. “I’m going to keep that the whole time. Whether that is a sport, whether it is in class, whether it is in life.”
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