USA Triathlon Announces 2024 U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team
by USA Triathlon
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — USA Triathlon today announced the 2024 U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team, the 17 elite paratriathletes and two guides who will represent the United States at this summer’s Paralympic Games Paris 2024. The Paris-bound team includes three defending Paralympic medalists from the Tokyo 2020 Games and six athletes who have won Paratriathlon World Championship titles.
Paratriathlon competition will span two days, Sept. 1-2 at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. The U.S. has won the most triathlon medals in Paralympic Games history with nine since triathlon made its Paralympics debut at the Rio 2016 Games. The U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team won three triathlon gold medals at the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, the most of any country, and has five triathlon gold medals across both the Tokyo and Rio Paralympic Games.
“U.S. paratriathletes have continued to raise the bar for success, winning four medals at the Paralympic Games in Rio and five medals in Tokyo. This group of talented athletes we’re taking to Paris will continue to build on that legacy,” said Scott Schnitzspahn, USA Triathlon High Performance General Manager. “These athletes have already made us proud, and no doubt will do so again this September. I encourage the multisport community to tune into the Paralympic Games and cheer for these world-class athletes as they chase medals for Team USA.”
"Today, we proudly celebrate the incredible athletes who will represent the U.S. at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. These remarkable athletes embody strength, perseverance, and the true spirit of sport. Their journeys inspire us all, showcasing the incredible potential of the human spirit,” said Victoria Brumfield, USA Triathlon CEO. “Congratulations to each member of the team – your hard work and determination have brought you to this moment. We are all cheering you on every step of the way."
All U.S. Paralympic Team nominations are pending final approval by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. In addition, there will be 16 bipartite invitation slots offered to specific athletes, worldwide, by World Triathlon later this month. Countries may qualify up to two athletes per para classification.
About the 2024 U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team
Mark Barr (Davis, Calif.)
PTS2
Paralympian (2016, 2008, 2004)
Barr, 37, returns to the Paralympic Games after his PTS2 classification was not included in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. A Paralympic swimmer who competed at the Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, Barr raced triathlon at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, placing fourth. Barr lost his right leg as a teenager due to cancer. He’d go on to swim for NCAA Division I California Polytechnic State University. In 2019, Barr won the 2019 ESPY for Best Male Athlete with a Disability. He was named USA Triathlon’s 2018 Male Paratriathlete of the Year.
Carson Clough, Charlotte, N.C.
PTS4
Clough, 30, played NCAA Division I lacrosse at the University of North Carolina. Making his Paralympics debut in Paris, Clough found para-sport following a boating accident that led to a below-the-knee amputation on his right leg. Looking for a new athletic endeavor, Clough was introduced to paratriathlon in 2022 through USA Triathlon’s para virtual combine. The program offers para athletes the opportunity to submit their running and swim times to USA Triathlon’s high performance department. Showing talent for swimming and running, Clough began training with USA Triathlon Certified Coach Mark Sortino and won the PTS4 Paratriathlon National Championship in July 2022, just months after learning the sport. Outside of sport, Clough owns and operates a coffee shop in Charlotte, N.C. – The Giddy Goat Coffee Roasters.
Kyle Coon, Colorado Springs, Colo.
PTVI
Guided by Zack Goodman
Paralympian (2020)
A Tokyo 2020 Paralympian, Coon is a member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and is coached by USA Triathlon Certified Coach Derick Williamson. He placed fifth in Tokyo and has earned 16 podiums and five wins on the World Triathlon Para Series circuit. Coon is guided by triathlete Zack Goodman (San Diego, Calif.). Together, they won the 2022 U.S. Paratriathlon national championship. Also an avid rock climber and downhill skier, Coon lost his vision at age 7 due to a rare form of eye cancer. Coon has summited Mt. Kilimanjaro and in 2018 became the first totally blind person to complete an IRONMAN in under 11 hours.
Owen Cravens, Algonquin, Ill.
PTVI
Guided by Ben Hoffman
Cravens, 21, will make his Paralympic debut in Paris. He is a member of USA Triathlon's elite development squad, Project Podium, one of two paratriathletes (along with Chris Hammer) to join the program based in Tempe, Arizona. Cravens grew up playing soccer until he was diagnosed with Stargardt Disease, a juvenile form of macular degeneration. He was introduced to triathlon through the Challenged Athletes Foundation and started his elite paratriathlon career in 2019, placing third at the Paratriathlon National Championships. Guided by IRONMAN champion triathlete Ben Hoffman (Tucson, Ariz.), Cravens won his first World Triathlon Para Series race in 2023 at Yokohama. He placed fourth at the 2023 World Championships.
Hailey Danz, Colorado Springs, Colo.
PTS2
2020, 2016, Paralympic silver medalist
A two-time Paralympic silver medalist (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020), Danz comes to Paris for her third Paralympic Games. A four-time World Champion, Danz has earned 22 wins in 46 World Triathlon starts. Danz won silver as part of a U.S. podium sweep with Allysa Seely (gold) and Melissa Stockwell (bronze) at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, paratriathlon’s debut at the Paralympics. Danz is a graduate of Northwestern University and is a member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team in Colorado Springs. Danz is a cancer survivor and had her leg amputated due to osteosarcoma at age 14. Danz then took up downhill skiing before being introduced to triathlon through Dare2Tri, a nonprofit and paratriathlon club based out of Chicago.
Kelly Elmlinger, San Antonio, Texas
PTS4
Paralympian (2020)
Elmlinger, 45, made her Paralympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, racing up a classification in the women’s PTS5 as her classification was not a part of the 2020 Paralympics. She won the 2023 World Championship and comes to Paris on a nine-race winning streak. A U.S. Army veteran, Elmlinger served three back-to-back deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. After her deployments, she earned her degree in nursing from the University of North Carolina and became an avid runner. Elmlinger in 2013 was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, a rare form of soft tissue cancer, leading to the amputation of her leg. Elmlinger has a daughter, Jayden, who will celebrate her 16th birthday in Paris.
Kendall Gretsch, Downers Grove, Ill.
PTWC
2020 Paralympic gold medalist; 2018, 2022 Winter Paralympic 5x medalist (biathlon & Nordic skiing)
Gretsch, 32, is a two-sport star and one of only five U.S. Paralympians to win gold medals in both the summer and winter Paralympic Games. She won gold in Tokyo in the first women’s triathlon wheelchair race in Paralympic history. A three-time World Champion, Gretsch became involved in triathlon after her sophomore year of college at Washington University in St. Louis, when was encouraged to get involved with non-profit Dare2Tri. Gretsch, who has spina bifida, is still involved with Dare2Tri today. She also works with the Sisters in Sports Foundation, an organization that helps support and connect female athletes with disabilities. Gretsch is a member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team in Colorado Springs.
Chris Hammer, Gilbert, Ariz.
PTS5
Paralympian (2020, 2016, 2012)
Hammer, 38, is a Paralympic veteran who finished fourth at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Before transitioning to triathlon, Hammer ran track and field at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Hammer trains with USA Triathlon’s elite training squad, Project Podium, becoming the program’s first paratriathlete to train alongside Olympic hopefuls. Fellow paratriathlete Owen Cravens later joined Hammer at Project Podium. Hammer won the 2021 World Championship and he is the first paratriathlete to race in the elite field at an IRONMAN 70.3 event. Hammer was born with one hand, the result of a congenital condition. He ran collegiately for Grand Valley State University and later coached the NCAA varsity women’s triathlon team at Davis & Elkins College.
Mohamed Lahna, Elk Grove, Calif.
PTS2
2016 Paralympic bronze medalist
Lahna won bronze at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games while representing his native Morocco. A resident of California since 2011, Lahna officially raced for Team USA for the first time in 2021. Born with Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency, leaving him without a femur in his right leg, Lahna was limited in his mobility as a young child. At the age of 20, he was fitted with a real prosthetic, and within five years, he rode his first bike. Twelve months later, he crossed the Atlas Mountains – 1,550 miles of diverse terrain across northwestern Africa — on that same bike. Today, Lahna credits the Challenged Athletes Foundation for supporting his elite triathlon career.
Emma Meyers, Pensacola, Fla.
PTS4
Meyers, 18, makes her Paralympic debut in Paris as the youngest member of the team. Meyers this spring signed her national letter of intent to compete in NCAA Division II varsity women’s triathlon at Colorado Mesa University. Meyers was born with fibular hemimelia, a congenital limb deficiency that limits the growth of the calf bone. Her leg was amputated below the knee when she was just a toddler, two months after being adopted from China by parents Jacob and Leah. She started her triathlon journey in 2017 and has earned 10 podiums and three wins in World Triathlon events.
Eric McElvenny, Pittsburgh, Pa.
PTS4
Paralympian (2020)
A Tokyo 2020 Paralympian, McElvenny, 41, is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who had his right leg amputated after stepping on an IED while serving with the U.S. Marine Corps in Afghanistan. McElvenny is a 2006 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, where he competed on the men’s rugby team. McElvenny began his triathlon career in 2013 thanks to the support of the Challenged Athletes Foundation. He raced at the 2013 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, and has raced eight full-distance IRONMAN events.
He has earned 13 podiums and four wins in World Triathlon para events.
Grace Norman, Bloomington, Ind.
PTS5
2020 Paralympic silver medalist; 2016 Paralympic gold medalist (triathlon), bronze medalist (400m)
A two-time Paralympian, Norman won gold at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and silver at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. She also competed in track and field in Rio, winning bronze in the women’s 400-meters. A four-time World Champion, Norman has won eight consecutive World Triathlon races dating back to November of 2022. A 2020 graduate of Cedarville University in Ohio, Norman competed on the NCAA track and cross-country teams, and also represented Cedarville at the 2019 USA Triathlon Collegiate Club National Championships, joining Allysa Seely as the first two paratriathletes to compete at the event. Norman was born with congenital constriction band syndrome in her left leg at birth, which resulted in the amputation of her left leg and right big toe below the knee. Her triathlon career began with a mini-triathlon in Ohio, and her first elite paratriathlon race was in 2014.
Emelia Perry, Philadelphia, Pa.
PTWC
Perry, 31, will make her Paralympic debut in Paris. The 2022 U.S. Paratriathlon National Champion, Perry has earned six podiums and two wins in World Triathlon events. Perry has been a member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team in Colorado Springs since 2023. A runner before sustaining a spinal cord injury in 2017, Perry started competing in wheelchair racing and triathlon in 2022. Born in Philadelphia, Perry moved with her family to Osaka, Japan, when she was a baby. She moved back to the U.S. in 2011 to attend school and run collegiately at Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, to study exercise science.
Howie Sanborn, Denver, Colo.
PTWC
Paris 2024 will be Sanborn’s Paralympic debut. He has earned 22 podiums, including eight wins at World Triathlon events. Sanborn, 42, is a retired U.S. Army veteran who served for 15 years as an Airborne Ranger and a demonstrator on the U.S. Army Parachute Team The Golden Knights. During his service with the Army, he began competing in triathlon. After sustaining an injury, nonprofit Dare2Tri helped him transition from a triathlete to a paratriathlete.
Allysa Seely, Glendale, Ariz.
PTS2
2016, 2020 Paralympic gold medalist
Seely is currently ranked No. 3 in the world in the World Triathlon Paralympic Qualification Ranking in women’s PTS2. Seely won gold at triathlon’s Paralympic debut at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and defended her gold at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games to become the first female two-time Paralympic gold medalist in triathlon. Seely is also a three-time World Paratriathlon champion, and in 2019 won an ESPY for Best Female Athlete with a Disability.
*Seely was added to the team on July 9, receiving a Bipartite invitation from the Bipartite Commission (World Triathlon and the International Paralympic Committee).
Melissa Stockwell, Colorado Springs, Colo.
PTS2
2016 Paralympic bronze medalist
Stockwell, 44, won a bronze medal in paratriathlon’s debut at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, completing a U.S. podium sweep with Allysa Seely and Hailey Danz. A three-time paratriathlon World Champion, Stockwell also competed at the Beijing 2008 Paralympics in swimming. A U.S. Army veteran, Stockwell in 2004 became the first female U.S. soldier in history to lose a limb in active combat. She was honored with a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for her service. Stockwell is a co-founder of the Chicago-based non-profit, Dare2Tri. A licensed prosthetist, Stockwell and her husband, Brian, own an orthotic and prosthetic company, Tolsma Stockwell Prosthetics.
Rachel Watts, St. Joseph, Mo.
PTS3
Watts competes in the women’s PTS3 classification. In Paris, women’s PTS3 athletes will race in the women’s PTS4 event. Watts, who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in 2018, made her elite paratriathlon debut in 2023 at the USA Triathlon Paratriathlon National Championships. She raced at her first World Triathlon Para Series event this May in Yokohama, and earned her first Para Cup victory in June at the World Triathlon Para Cup Taranto.
*Watts was added to the team on July 9, via a country slot reallocation.
Triathlon at the Paralympic Games
At the Paralympic Games, triathletes will cover a 750-meter swim, non-drafting 20-kilometer bike and 5k run. All races will be held in the heart of Paris, at the Pont Alexandre III bridge, the same venue as the Olympic triathlon competitions.
The Paralympic triathlon events will take place Sunday, Sept. 1 and Monday, Sept. 2.
Sunday’s competition will feature PTS5 (men's and women's), PTS4 (men's and women's), PTS3 (men's), and PTS2 (men's and women's), with races beginning at 8 a.m. in Paris (2 a.m. ET/11 p.m. PT, Aug. 31). *Note: the Women's PTS4 race will include both classes PTS4 and PTS3.
Monday’s competition will include PTWC (men's and women's) and PTVI (men's and women's), with races beginning at 8 a.m. in Paris (2 a.m. ET/11 p.m. PT, Sept. 1).
For streaming and broadcast information, visit NBC’s website here.
Athletes whose classifications are not included in the Paris Games are permitted to “class up” and race in a higher category against athletes with less severe impairments, provided they meet qualification and selection criteria.
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon, paratriathlon, and indoor and virtual multisport events in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 3,500 events and races and connects with and supports more than 300,000 unique active members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work at the grassroots level with athletes, coaches, and race directors — as well as the USA Triathlon Foundation — USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including World Triathlon World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games.