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2024 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team

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USA Triathlon Announces 2024 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team

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by USA Triathlon

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — USA Triathlon today announced the 14 members of the 2024 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team, the group of elite paratriathletes who will represent the U.S. at World Triathlon Para Series events and World Triathlon Para Cup events throughout the 2024 season. 

Five U.S. elite paratriathletes on the National Team have already qualified for the Paris 2024 Paralympics: Hailey Danz, Kelly Elmlinger, Kendall Gretsch, Mohamed Lahna and Grace Norman.

On March 8, athletes will race at the 2024 Americas Triathlon Para Championships Miami, hosted by CLASH Miami, in the final auto-qualification event for the chance to qualify for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Athletes who win their classification will qualify. To learn more about Paralympic and Olympic qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, click here.

The full U.S. Paralympic Team for the Paris 2024 Paralympics will be announced in the summer.

2024 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team Roster

Elite Women

Hailey Danz 

Colorado Springs, Colo., PTS2 classification

Danz won her third consecutive world title in the PTS2 category at the 2023 World Triathlon Para World Championships in Pontevedra and has nine World Championships medals in her career. She won silver at the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, matching her 2016 silver medal from Rio to become a two-time PTS2 Paralympic silver medalist. Danz is a member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team Program that trains at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. 

Kelly Elmlinger

San Antonio, Texas, PTS4 

A U.S. Army veteran, Elmlinger won gold at the 2023 World Triathlon Para World Championships. She debuted on the elite paratriathlon circuit in 2018 and made her first Paralympic appearance in Tokyo, classing up to race in the PTS5 classification. Her PTS4 classification will be included in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games program that will feature 11 medal events for paratriathlon, three more than the Tokyo Paralympic Games.

Kendall Gretsch

Downers Grove, Ill, PTWC 

Gretsch 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. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, she won the first women’s triathlon wheelchair race in Paralympic history in a dramatic, thrilling finish. She followed that performance six months later by winning two medals (one gold) in biathlon and cross-country skiing at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, giving her six Paralympic medals in her career. She ended the 2023 paratriathlon season with silver at the 2023 World Triathlon Para World Championships. 

Grace Norman

Bloomington, Ind., PTS5

Norman had a dominant 2023, winning her fourth world title and eighth career World Championships medal to cap an undefeated season. Norman earned Paralympic silver in the PTS5 category in Tokyo to go with her 2016 gold medal from Rio. 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. 

Allysa Seely

Glendale, Ariz., PTS2

At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Seely became the only female two-time Paralympic gold medalist in triathlon, adding to the gold medal she won in paratriathlon’s Paralympic debut at the Paralympic Games Rio 2016. Seely is also a three-time World Paratriathlon champion, and in 2019 won an ESPY for Best Female Athlete with a Disability.

Elite Men

Mark Barr

Davis, Calif, PTS2

A swimmer throughout his life, Barr represented the U.S. at the Athens 2004 Paralympics, where he collected two fourth-place finishes. Barr, who lost his leg to bone cancer in his teens, also raced at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. During this time, he swam for NCAA Division I California Polytechnic State University. He was introduced to triathlon through the Challenged Athletes Foundation, racing at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, where he placed fourth. He won the 2018 world championship and in 2019 was awarded the ESPY for Best Male Athlete with a Disability.

Carson Clough

Charlotte, N.C., PTS4

Clough's first introduction to the sport came through USA Triathlon's Virtual Combine, which recruits para athletes who show an interest in and talent for paratriathlon. He first competed in triathlon in 2022 and has quickly advanced in the sport, winning the U.S. National Championship for PTS4 in July 2022. In 2023, Clough placed fourth at the World Triathlon Para Cup Paris and fifth at the World Triathlon Para World Championships in Pontevedra. A former NCAA Division I lacrosse player at the University of North Carolina, Clough is owner of a coffee business, Giddy Goat Coffee, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Kyle Coon 

Colorado Springs, Colo., PTVI

A member of the U.S. Paratriathlon Resident Team Program in Colorado Springs, Coon races in the PTVI category. He won his first career U.S. Paratriathlon National Championship in 2022, followed by a fifth-place finish at the 2022 World Championships. He earned the bronze at the 2021 World Championships. 

Zack Goodman (Guide)

San Diego, Calif., Guide, PTVI

Goodman has guided Coon since 2019 after meeting Coon at Camp No Sight No Limits, a camp for elite visually impaired paratriathletes. Goodman guided Coon to his first U.S. national championship in 2022. Paratriathlon guides are considered full-fledged U.S. National Team members by USA Triathlon, receiving support at the same capacity as the paratriathletes themselves.

Owen Cravens

Tempe, Ariz., PTVI

Owen Cravens is a member of USA Triathlon's elite development squad, Project Podium, joining Hammer as the first two paratriathletes to join the program led by coach Parker Spencer. 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. In 2023, he won the World Triathlon Para Cup Long Beach, placed third at the World Triathlon Para Cup Paris and fourth at the World Triathlon Para Championships in Pontevedra.

Ben Hoffman (Guide)

Tucson, Ariz., Guide, PTVI

Ben Hoffman is a professional triathlete and guide for paratriathlete Owen Cravens. Originally from Grand Junction, Colorado, Hoffman was first exposed to triathlon at the University of Montana and quickly rose to the top of the ranks at the collegiate level. Since turning professional in 2007, Hoffman has earned IRONMAN, 70.3, and National Championship victories.

Chris Hammer

Gilbert, Ariz., PTS5

Hammer is the first paratriathlete to earn a standard USA Triathlon elite license and became the first paratriathlete to race in the elite field at an IRONMAN 70.3. A two-time fourth-place finisher at the Paralympics (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020), Hammer in 2022 moved his family from West Virginia to Arizona to train with USA Triathlon’s elite training squad, Project Podium, becoming the program’s first paratriathlete to train alongside Olympic hopefuls. Hammer won the 2021 World Championship and placed third at the 2023 World Triathlon Para World Championships

Mohamed Lahna 

Elk Grove, Calif, PTS2

Lahna was born and raised in Morocco and represented Morocco at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, winning bronze in the PTS2 category. A resident of California since 2011, Lahna officially raced for Team USA for the first time in 2021. In 2023, Lahna placed third at the World Triathlon Para Cup Paris and second at the World Triathlon Para World Championships in Pontevedra.

Howie Sanborn

Denver, Colo, PTWC

Sanborn 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. Sanborn's highlights from the 2023 season included a seventh-place finish at the World Triathlon Para Cup Paris and fifth-place finish at the World Triathlon Para Championships in Pontevedra.

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