The United States recently competed in the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
Team U.S., for the eighth consecutive Olympic Games, won more medals than any other country.
In Paris, the overall medal count for Team USA was 126 medals (40 golds, 44 silvers and 41 bronzes). Overall, 257 American athletes competed.
Some truly amazing performances were on full display. In women’s gymnastics, Simone Biles came out of the Paris games as the second most decorated woman gymnast in Olympic history with 11 medals, seven of them gold. The men’s rowing team won their first gold medal in 64 years in another event.
I am always fascinated by inspiring stories of people who overcame great odds to achieve their dreams. There are so many of these amazing stories, but one caught my eye while doing research on the Olympics.
Have you heard of the Paralympic Games? Have you ever watched the Paralympic Games? The Paralympics do not get as much media attention as the Olympics. But the athletes in the Paralympics are simply astounding. The Paralympic Games are happening as I write (and last through Sept. 8). If you haven’t heard or watched the games, I would encourage you to do so. I am watching this year’s games. In addition, I found some amazing videos of past Paralympic games on YouTube. Check them out. You, too, will be amazed.
In the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, 4,000 athletes from around the world compete in 549 medal events. The games feature 22 different sports in both individual and team categories.
Athletes in the Paralympic Games train hard, many times harder than other athletes because of their disabilities and the astounding odds they must overcome.
They are an inspiration because they do not see their disabilities as a barrier. They follow their dreams anyway. The Paralympics offer a truly unique opportunity to see disabilities in another way. They inspire all of us, disabled or not. They can bring about social awareness and change in a way no other event can.
Blind football, sitting volleyball, blind swimming and wheelchair fencing are just a few of the unique sports featured in the Paralympics.
While doing research, I came across a person who is a true inspirational American. Her name is Trischa Zorn, and she was a paralympic swimmer. Zorn was one of the most decorated athletes in the history of the Paralympic games. She was a truly remarkable athlete.
Zorn was born with a genetic eye condition that rendered her blind. She was 16 when she first competed in Arnhem, Netherlands, in the 1980 Paralympic Games where she won seven gold medals. She won six more gold medals in New York at the 1984 Paralympic Games. In her athletic career, she won 55 medals (41 gold, nine silver and five bronze). In 2012, she was inducted into the International Paralympic Hall of Fame. She was nominated as Sports Illustrated’s woman of the year in 1988. In 2022, Zorn was inducted into the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame.
Zorn also became the very first visually impaired athlete to earn an NCAA Division I scholarship. She became a four-time All-American backstroke champion. U.S. Swimming created an award honoring this amazing athlete with the Trischa L. Zorn Award for a swimmer or relay team with a disability for outstanding performance and excellence.
I hope knowing Zorn’s story has inspired you to watch the Paralympic Games. Her story and many other stories like hers speak to all of us loud and clear. Whatever you think your limitations are, they, too, can be overcome. So get out there and show your stuff. You are more amazing than you ever could have imagined.
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Richard Stride is the current CEO of Cascade Community Healthcare. He can be reached at docrs53@gmail.com.
