Amy

Purdy

Quick Facts

• Amy Purdy began snowboarding at age 15, but in 1999, she contracted bacterial meningitis at the age of 19 and had less than a two percent chance of living. She was able to survive the infection, but lost both of her legs below the knee and would later require a kidney from her father the week before her 21st birthday
• Co-founded Adaptive Action Sports in 2005, a non-profit organization and branch of Disabled Sports USA that is dedicated to introducing people with physical challenges to action sports
• Instrumental in advocating for the inclusion of adaptive snowboarding to the 2014 Paralympic Games
• Works as a motivational speaker, model and actress
• Spokesperson for the Challenged Athletes Foundation, an organization that provides grants for training, competition and equipment for athletes with disabilities
• Featured in a Madonna music video and a photo shoot with Nikki Sixx, and she made her film debut in What’s Buggin’ Seth, a movie by Eli Steele, in 2005
• Competed on Dancing With the Stars
• Contestant on the 21st season of The Amazing Race with partner Daniel Gale
• Married to Gale
• Co-author of "On My Own Two Feet"
• Hobbies include exploring the outdoors, writing, wakeboarding, mountain biking and cooking.

Paralympic Experience

• 2-time Paralympian; 3-time Paralympic medalist (1 silver, 2 bronze)
• Paralympic Games Pyeongchang 2018, silver (Snowboard Cross - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women), bronze (Banked Slalom - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women)
• Paralympic Games Sochi 2014, bronze (Snowboardcross - Standing - Women)

World Championship Experience

• Most recent: 2017 – (Snowboard Cross - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women), bronze (Banked Slalom - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women)
• Years of participation: Banked Slalom - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women 2017; Snowboard Cross - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women 2017; Snowboardcross - Standing - Women 2012
• Medals: 2 (1 silver, 1 bronze)
• Silver – 2012 (Snowboardcross - Standing - Women)
• Bronze – 2017 (Banked Slalom - Lower Limb 1 Impaired - Women)