Tracy Otto

Tracy Otto
Personal information
Born (1995-11-28) November 28, 1995 (age 28)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Home townPlant City, Florida, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Tampa
Sport
CountryUnited States
SportPara-archery
DisabilityQuadriplegic
Disability classW1
Medal record
Para-archery
Representing the  United States
Parapan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2023 Santiago Individual W1

Tracy Otto (born November 28, 1995) is an American Paralympic archer. She represented the United States at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.

Career

Otto began practicing para-archery in March 2021.[1]

Otto made her international debut for the United States at the 2023 World Para Archery Championships where she finished in ninth place.[2] In November 2023 she represented the United States at the 2023 Parapan American Games where she won a gold medal in the individual W1 event.[3][4] She then competed at the 2024 Para Pan American Championships in April 2024 and won a gold medal in the mixed team W1 with Jason Tabansky, and a gold medal in the individual W1 event.[5][6][7]

On May 13, 2024, she was named to the roster to represent the United States at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.[8][9]

Otto finished eighth in the Paralympic women's individual W1 event.[10] She again competed with Jason Tabansky in the Paralympic mixed team W1 event, where the duo finished sixth.[11]

Otto aims to compete in the 2028 Summer Paralympics in Los Angeles.[12]

Personal life

Otto is from Florida. Before October 2019, Otto was an "aspiring fitness model".[1]

On October 24, 2019, Otto's ex-boyfriend, Francpiero Del Medico, broke into her home and attacked Otto and her new boyfriend, Rick Riessle. Riessle was shot eight times with a pellet gun and stabbed in the back puncturing his lung.[13] Otto was shot five times and stabbed in the back of the neck. One pellet so severely damaged her left eye, surgeons had to remove it. He also shot a pellet down her throat, and sexually assaulted her with the weapon while firing it as he did.[14][15] As a result of the attack, Otto was left paralyzed from the chest down, making her a C5 quadriplegic. She uses a wheelchair.[1]

Following her rehabilitation, Otto's family placed her in a nursing home in Chicago.[16] Riessle brought Otto back to Florida,[16] where he is now her full-time caregiver and arrow agent.[17][18] In September 2024, Otto announced her engagement to Riessle and that she was pregnant, with her due date in January.[19][12]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Tracy Otto: Paralysed by her ex-boyfriend, now a Paralympian". BBC Sport. August 27, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2024.
  2. ^ "Tracy Otto aims for the Paralympics". gohawkeye.org. April 27, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "Otto adds another quota slot and more gold as USA tops the medal table at the Para Pan American Games". USA Archery. November 22, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  4. ^ "Para Archery: USA Wins Gold Thanks to Tracy Otto". santiago2023.org. November 22, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  5. ^ "Otto and Tabansky seek to set the tone for the weekend in claiming the USA's first gold in Brazil". USA Archery. April 26, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  6. ^ "Golden finish for the USA at the 2024 Para Pan American Championships". USA Archery. April 27, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  7. ^ "Tracy Otto". teamusa.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  8. ^ Caceres, Michelle (June 27, 2024). "Plant City Paralympian To Take Her Shot In Paris". Plant City Observer. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  9. ^ Corey, Allie (July 15, 2024). "Plant City para archer qualifies for Paralympics after surviving brutal attack". Fox13news.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  10. ^ "Otto opens with a win before exiting to eventual back-to-back Paralympic champion". USA Archery. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  11. ^ "Paris 2024, where medals and memories meets marriage and motherhood". USA Archery. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  12. ^ a b "Back from Paris, Tracy Otto now practicing for Los Angeles". baynews9.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  13. ^ "Tracy Otto, chasing her dreams through archery, is keen to be a light in the world". USA Archery. January 17, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  14. ^ Marrero, Tony (October 25, 2019). "Riverview man sexually assaulted woman with pellet gun. She may never walk again". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  15. ^ Marrero, Tony (March 30, 2023). "Hillsborough woman aims for Paralympics after pellet gun, knife attack". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  16. ^ a b Pugmire, Jerome (August 29, 2024). "Five years after brutal attack severed her spine, Tracy Otto proudly calls herself a Paralympian". ABC News. Associated Press. Retrieved September 1, 2024.
  17. ^ Corey, Allie (April 18, 2023). "Hillsborough woman finds passion for archery after brutal attack leaves her paralyzed from chest down". Fox13news.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  18. ^ Herz, Jane (March 2, 2023). "I was paralyzed by my jealous ex when he caught me in bed with a new man — now I'm a Paralympian". New York Post. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  19. ^ "Paralympic Archer Tracy Otto Announces She's Pregnant Hours After Fiancé Proposes Under the Eiffel Tower". People.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.