Zion Clark is inspiring millions after his appearance on “American’s Got Talent” this week.
The 25-year-old appeared on the popular reality TV competition series on Tuesday, auditioning in front of judges Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara, Howie Mandel, and Simon Cowell. Clark was born with caudal regression syndrome, a rare birth defect that left him with no legs.
In the audition, Clark displayed his impressive athletic abilities, leading to a standing ovation from the judges and the show’s audience. Clark also opened up about his journey and career thus far to the judges, including his childhood in and out of foster homes before finally being adopted by his foster mother, Kimberly Hawkins, per NBC.
“Once I got adopted, everything came into place,” he shared on the show, detailing how he eventually became one of the top three wrestlers in the state of Ohio by the time he was in high school. “She really turned my life around and showed me my own potential,” he added when discussing his mother.
An elite all-American wrestler and MMA fighter, Clark has also amassed a massive social media following with one million Instagram followers to date. He also was the subject of “Zion,” a Netflix short documentary chronicling his wrestling career, and the author of “Work with What You Got: A Memoir.” Clark also holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest man on two hands, per NBC.
After his performance in the series, Clark got the rare quadruple yes on the series, with each judge affirming the multi-hyphenate sports star and moving him along in the competition.
“I am so happy you came on the show,” Cowell told him in the episode. “You have no idea. You have such an incredible personality. You define the word ‘inspiration.’ I listened to everything you said … amazing.”
Check out the moving clip below:
“America’s Got Talent” airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on NBC and streams the next day on Peacock.
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