17 Fascinating Facts About Famous Paralympic Athletes
1. Tatyana McFadden
Tatyana McFadden, a wheelchair racer, has won 17 Paralympic medals! She was born with spina bifida and adopted from a Russian orphanage at age 6.
2. Ellie Simmonds
Ellie Simmonds, a British swimmer, has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism, and has won five Paralympic gold medals. She started swimming at age 5.
3. Matt Stutzman
Matt Stutzman, also known as the “Armless Archer,” was born without arms but holds a world record for the longest accurate shot in archery.
4. Jessica Long
Jessica Long, a U.S. swimmer, has won 23 Paralympic medals. She was adopted from Siberia and had her legs amputated at 18 months due to fibular hemimelia.
5. Daniel Dias
Brazilian swimmer Daniel Dias has won an impressive 24 Paralympic medals. He was inspired to swim after watching the 2004 Paralympic Games.
6. Marieke Vervoort
Belgian wheelchair racer Marieke Vervoort won gold and silver in the 2012 London Paralympics. She lived with a degenerative muscle disease and chose euthanasia in 2019.
7. Jody Cundy
Jody Cundy, a British cyclist, was born with a deformed foot that was amputated when he was 3. He has competed in both swimming and cycling events.
8. Sarah Storey
Dame Sarah Storey, a British athlete, has competed in both swimming and cycling, winning 14 gold medals. She was born without a functioning left hand.
9. David Weir
David Weir, a British wheelchair racer, has six Paralympic gold medals. Born with a spinal cord transection, he began racing at age 8.
10. Heinrich Popow
German sprinter Heinrich Popow lost his leg to cancer at age 9. He won gold in the 100m at the 2012 London Paralympics.
11. Muffy Davis
Muffy Davis, a U.S. skier, won seven Paralympic medals. After a skiing accident left her paralyzed, she switched to sit-skiing.
12. Trischa Zorn
Trischa Zorn, a blind U.S. swimmer, is the most decorated Paralympian with 55 medals. She competed in seven Paralympic Games from 1980 to 2004.
13. Markus Rehm
Markus Rehm, a German long jumper, lost his right leg in a wakeboarding accident. He set a world record with a jump of 8.48 meters.
14. Oksana Masters
Oksana Masters, a U.S. rower and cross-country skier, was born in Ukraine with radiation-induced birth defects. She has won multiple medals in both summer and winter sports.
15. Jonnie Peacock
British sprinter Jonnie Peacock lost his leg to meningitis at age 5. He won gold in the 100m at both the 2012 and 2016 Paralympics.
16. Melissa Stockwell
Melissa Stockwell, a U.S. triathlete, lost her leg in a roadside bomb explosion while serving in Iraq. She won a bronze medal in the 2016 Rio Paralympics.
17. Richard Whitehead
Richard Whitehead, a British sprinter, was born without lower legs. He holds the world record for the T42 200m and 400m sprints.
