Melissa Stockwell (born January 31, 1980[2]) is an American two-time Paralympic triathlete, swimmer and former U.S. Army officer. Competing in the 2008 Summer Paralympics in three swimming events, she returned to race in the 2016 Paralympic Games and won a bronze medal in the inaugural triathlon event on September 11, 2016.
A first lieutenant, she was the first female soldier to lose a limb in the Iraq War. She lost her left leg when a roadside bomb exploded when she was leading a convoy in Baghdad.[4] For her service in Iraq she was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.[5]
Following her retirement from the military she works as a prosthetist[6] and served on the board of directors of the Wounded Warrior Project from 2005 to 2014.[6]
Sport
She subsequently became the first Iraq veteran chosen for the Paralympics.[7] She competed in three swimming events, the 100 m butterfly, 100 m freestyle, and 400 m freestyle, at the 2008 Summer Paralympics, and finished sixth, fifth, and fourth in her heats, respectively.[8] She was the U.S. team's flag bearer at the closing ceremonies.[5]
Turning to triathlon after the Beijing Paralympics, Stockwell was selected to represent the US in the 2010 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships in Budapest. She won the Women's TRI-2 (above knee amputee) class, then successfully defended her TRI-2 World Champion title in 2011 and 2012.[9] She is a multiple US National Paratriathlon Champion in her classification,[10][11] and was named USAT Paratriathlete of the Year in 2010[12] and 2011.[13] As of January 2013[update] Stockwell is at the top of the ITU's rankings in the women's TRI-2 class.[14] She won a bronze medal in the PT2 category at the 2016 Paralympics.[15]
Stockwell is a Level 1 USAT Triathlon coach and co-founder of Dare2Tri, a Chicago-based triathlon club specifically for athletes with disability.[6][16]
