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Amazing Athletes

Meet the competitors who prove that prosthetics enable extraordinary human performance. Gold medals, world records, and barrier-breaking achievements.

Runner with a prosthetic blade leg racing on an asphalt path

Champions Who Inspire the World

Athletes using prosthetics compete at the highest levels of sport and prove that prosthetics are empowering, not limiting. These competitors have earned gold medals, set world records, and shattered every expectation placed on them. Click "Learn More" on each athlete to read their full story.

Amputee athlete with running blade prosthetics warming up before a sprint workout

Hunter Woodhall

USA | TRACK AND FIELD - 400M

Gold medalist at Paris 2024 Paralympics

Gold x1

Hunter Woodhall was born with fibular hemimelia and had both legs amputated below the knee at just 11 months old. Rather than let that define his limits, he pushed forward to become one of the fastest 400-meter runners in Paralympic history.

He was the first double-amputee to earn a college track and field scholarship in the United States. He is married to Olympic triple jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall, making them one of the most accomplished athletic couples in the world.

Young amputee athlete resting after a track and field training session

Ezra Frech

USA | TRACK AND FIELD - SPRINT AND HIGH JUMP

Two gold medals at Paris 2024 at age 19

Gold x2

Ezra Frech won the 100-meter sprint by just 0.02 seconds -- a margin so thin it required a photo finish to confirm. He also claimed gold in the high jump, making him a double champion at only 19 years old.

Beyond competition, Ezra is a champion for Angel City Sports, an organization co-founded by his father Clayton Frech, dedicated to helping young athletes with disabilities access competitive sport. He believes every kid deserves the chance to compete.

Jessica Long, American Paralympic swimmer, competing at the 2012 London Paralympics

Jessica Long

USA | PARALYMPIC SWIMMING

29 Paralympic medals across multiple Games

Gold x16 Silver x7 Bronze x6

Jessica Long was adopted from Russia at 13 months old. Both of her legs were amputated at 18 months due to a condition called fibular hemimelia. She started swimming at age 10 and won her first Paralympic medals at just 12 years old.

With 29 total medals (16 gold, 7 silver, 6 bronze), she is one of the most decorated Paralympic swimmers in history. Swimmers do not use prosthetics in the water -- they rely entirely on technique, strength, and determination.

Amy Purdy, American Paralympic snowboarder

Amy Purdy

USA | PARALYMPIC SNOWBOARDING

3 Paralympic medals, Dancing with the Stars finalist

Silver x1 Bronze x2

Amy Purdy lost both legs below the knee at age 19 from bacterial meningitis. Doctors gave her only a 2% chance of survival. Against those odds, she not only survived but was back on a snowboard just 7 months after receiving her prosthetic legs.

She went on to win three Paralympic medals in snowboard cross (one silver and two bronze) and was a runner-up on Dancing with the Stars Season 18, proving that prosthetics open doors to possibilities that most people never imagined.

Hugh Herr, bionic researcher and rock climber, at a 2013 speaking event

Hugh Herr

USA | ROCK CLIMBING AND INVENTOR

Lost both legs climbing, now climbs harder routes than before

"Leader of the Bionic Age" -- TIME

Hugh Herr lost both legs in a climbing accident as a teenager. Instead of giving up the sport he loved, he began designing custom climbing prosthetic feet at MIT -- specialized shapes for different types of rock faces and holds.

TIME magazine called him the "Leader of the Bionic Age". His specially designed feet let him reach holds that other climbers cannot access, effectively making him a stronger climber than he was before his accident.

Did You Know?

Most Paralympic swimmers actually do not use prosthetics when racing. The rules do not allow them. Instead, swimmers with limb differences learn specialized techniques to move powerfully through the water using their natural abilities and extraordinary determination.

The Paralympics started in 1960 in Rome, Italy. They take place every four years, right after the Olympic Games, in the same city and using the same venues. The word "Para" comes from the Greek word meaning "beside" -- the Paralympics run alongside the Olympics.

Athletes are placed into different classification categories based on their functional abilities, ensuring fair competition. For example, a runner with one prosthetic leg competes against other runners with similar abilities, not against runners with two prosthetic legs. This system ensures that medals are won through skill and training, not differences in physical condition.

Test Your Knowledge

Q1. How many Paralympic medals has Jessica Long won?

Q2. What does Hugh Herr design?

Q3. What happened 7 months after Amy Purdy lost her legs?

References

  1. Paralympic Athletes Database -- International Paralympic Committee.
  2. U.S. Paralympic Team -- Team USA.
  3. Angel City Sports -- Adaptive Sports for Youth.
  4. Hero Arm -- Open Bionics.
  5. The New Bionics That Let Us Run, Climb and Dance -- Hugh Herr, TED Talk.