0
GOLD
0
SILVER
1
BRONZE
5'5"
45
Colorado Springs, CO
University of Colorado
After graduating from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2002, Melissa Stockwell was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army’s transportation corps. One month after being deployed to Iraq, in April 2004, she became the first female American soldier in history to lose a limb in active combat after her vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. She was later honored with a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for her service. Four years later, she became the first Iraq War veteran to qualify for the Paralympic Games, competing in swimming at the Beijing 2008 Paralympics. She was selected to be the flag bearer for Team USA at the Beijing closing ceremonies.
After Beijing, Stockwell shifted her focus to triathlon because she enjoyed the variety that it gave her. She made her elite ITU debut in 2009, and went on to earn three consecutive world titles from 2010-2012. In 2016, she earned a spot on the inaugural U.S. paratriathlon team for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, which featured the sport as a medal event for the first time. She earned a bronze medal in the PTS2 category, sharing the podium as part of a U.S. sweep with silver medalist Hailey Danz and gold medalist Allysa Seely. She also competed in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and finished fifth overall.
Stockwell is a co-founder of the Chicago-based Dare2tri Paratriathlon Club with Keri Serota and Dan Tun. She is a USA Triathlon Level I certified coach, and serves as a mentor and friend to her fellow Dare2tri athletes as they train and compete. She also serves on the board of directors for the Wounded Warriors Project and the USA Triathlon Women’s Committee. She is also a member of the USA Triathlon Foundation Board of Trustees. She is a licensed prosthetist but is currently training for triathlon full-time at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. One of her pre-race rituals is that she always has to eat gummy worms the night before a race. She is married to Brian Tolsma and has two children, Dallas and Millie.
2016 Paralympic Bronze Medalist, Paratriathlon
Three-time ITU Paratriathlon World Champion (2012, 2011, 2010)
12-time World Paratriathlon Event medalist (4 golds, 6 silvers, 2 bronzes)
Four-time USA Paratriathlon National Champion (2018, 2013, 2012, 2011)
Five-time ITU Paratriathlon World Cup medalist (4 golds, 1 silver)
2013 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships silver medalist
2015 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships bronze medalist
Completed her first IRONMAN in Arizona on Nov. 17, 2013
2008 U.S. Paralympic Team, Swimming
PARIS – The Seine River proved inviting to Hailey Danz and seven American teammates, all of whom medaled across 11 paratriathlon events on a gorgeous Monday at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.Delivering a dominant performance in the 20-kilometer bike d...
The paratriathlon gold medalist heads into the Paralympic year with a No. 1 ranking and loads of confidence.
Hailey Danz can’t wait to feed off of the energy and encouragement provided by friends and family along a familiar paratriathlon course at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.The 33-year-old paratriathlete – who has trained at and called Colorado Springs, ...
