2024 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team
USA Triathlon Announces 2025 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team
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by USA Triathlon
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — USA Triathlon today announced the 12 members of the 2025 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team, the group of elite paratriathletes who will represent the U.S. at World Triathlon Para Series events and World Triathlon Para Cup events throughout the 2025 season.
The talented roster of elite paratriathletes includes Paralympians and Paralympic medalists, world champions, national champions and U.S. military veterans.
In addition to racing on the World Triathlon circuit around the world, U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team athletes will race domestically in the U.S. at the 2025 USA Paratriathlon National Championships, held for the first time in conjunction with USA Triathlon Sprint & Olympic Distance National Championships Aug. 8-10 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
2025 U.S. Elite Paratriathlon National Team Roster
ELITE WOMEN
Colorado Springs, Colo., PTS2 classification
A three-time Paralympian, Danz won gold at the Paralympic Games Paris 2024, the third Paralympic medal in her stellar career. She won back-to-back silver medals at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. A four-time World Champion, Danz has earned 23 wins in 49 World Triathlon starts. A childhood cancer survivor, Danz was introduced to triathlon through Dare2Tri, a nonprofit and paratriathlon club based out of Chicago.
San Antonio, Texas, PTS4
A member of the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Teams, Elmlinger won the World Championship in 2023 and 2021 in her PTS4 classification. A U.S. Army veteran, Elmlinger served three back-to-back deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. After her deployments, she earned her degree in nursing from the University of North Carolina and became an avid runner. In 2013, she was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, a rare form of soft tissue cancer, leading to the amputation of her leg. An ambassador for the Wounded Warrior Project, Elmlinger started her triathlon journey in 2018 and was named the 2018 USA Paratriathlon Developmental Athlete of the Year. She is the mother of one daughter.
Downers Grove, Ill, PTWC
Gretsch is a two-sport star and one of only five U.S. Paralympians to win gold medals in both the summer and winter Paralympic Games. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, she won the first women’s triathlon wheelchair race in Paralympic history. She followed that performance six months later by winning two medals (one gold) in biathlon and cross-country skiing at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. At the Paris 2024 Paralympics, she won silver, giving her seven Paralympic medals in her illustrious career. Following Paris, she won the World Championship at the 2024 World Triathlon Para World Championships in Torremolinos, Spain.
Bloomington, Ind., PTS5
One of paratriathlon’s biggest stars, Norman is a three-time Paralympian who had a dominant 2024 season. She won gold at the Paris 2024 Paralympics — the fourth Paralympic medal in her career — and followed that with her fifth world title at the 2024 World Triathlon Para World Championships. Norman earned Paralympic silver in the PTS5 classification at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and gold at Rio 2016. She also competed in track and field in Rio, winning bronze in the women’s 400-meters. A 2020 graduate of Cedarville University in Ohio, Norman competed on the NCAA track and cross-country teams.
Glendale, Ariz., PTS2
Seely returns for another season of racing as one of the sport’s most decorated stars. She is a two-time Paralympic gold medalist, winning at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. She earned a third Paralympic medal, bronze, at the Paris 2024 Paralympics last summer. She followed that performance by winning her fifth World Championship at the 2024 World Triathlon Para World Championships. A graduate of Arizona State University, Seely competed for ASU at USA Triathlon Collegiate Club National Championships, becoming the first paratriathlete to race in the event. In 2019 Seely won an ESPY for Best Female Athlete with a Disability.
ELITE MEN
Davis, Calif, PTS2
A four-time Paralympian in triathlon and swimming, Barr earned his long-sought first Paralympic medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, a bronze in the PTS2 race. A swimmer throughout his life, Barr lost his leg to bone cancer while in his teens. He’d go on to represent the U.S. at the Athens 2004 Paralympics, where he collected two fourth-place finishes. He also competed at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games and swam for NCAA Division I California Polytechnic State University. He was introduced to triathlon through the Challenged Athletes Foundation, racing at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, where he placed fourth. The 2018 World Champion, Barr was awarded the 2019 ESPY for Best Male Athlete with a Disability.
Charlotte, N.C., PTS4
A Paralympic medalist and a former NCAA Division I lacrosse player at the University of North Carolina, Clough’s first introduction to triathlon came through USA Triathlon's Virtual Combine, which recruits para athletes who show an interest in and potential talent for paratriathlon. He first competed in triathlon in 2022 and quickly advanced in the sport, winning a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in the PTS4 classification. Outside of sport, Clough owns and operates a coffee shop in Charlotte, N.C. – The Giddy Goat Coffee Roasters.
Algonquin, Ill., PTVI
A Paris 2024 Paralympian, Cravens placed fourth in the PTVI race as a 21-year-old, just 18 seconds off the podium. Cravens grew up playing soccer until he was diagnosed with Stargardt Disease, a juvenile form of macular degeneration. He was introduced to triathlon through the Challenged Athletes Foundation. He trains in Boulder, Colorado, and will be guided by Tokyo 2020 Olympic medalist Kevin McDowell.
Geneva, Ill., PTVI Guide
An elite triathlete and Olympic medalist, McDowell now transitions to guiding paratriathlete Owen Cravens. McDowell won Olympic silver at the Tokyo 2020 Games as a member of the U.S. Mixed Relay team and he placed sixth in the men’s race, the highest-ever finish for a U.S. man at the Olympic Games. McDowell grew up participating in USA Triathlon’s youth and junior elite triathlon circuit as part of the Chicago-based Multisport Madness Triathlon Team. He represented Team USA at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games and at the 2011 Junior World Championships. That year, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and took six months off to complete chemotherapy. A year later, he returned to elite competition.
Gilbert, Ariz., PTS5
Hammer won gold in the PTS5 race at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, claiming his first Paralympic medal. A four-time Paralympian, Hammer placed fourth at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympics before his gold medal breakthrough in Paris. Before transitioning to triathlon, Hammer competed in track and field at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Hammer trained with USA Triathlon’s elite training group, Project Podium in the lead-up to Paris, the program’s first paratriathlete to train alongside Olympic hopefuls. Hammer has also raced long course triathlon, competing as the only paratriathlete in the elite field of several IRONMAN 70.3 races.
Hayward, Calif, PTS2
Lahna won silver in the PTS2 classification at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, the first Paralympic medal for Lahna while competing for the U.S. He also won bronze at the Rio 2016 Paralympics while representing his native Morocco. Born and raised in Morocco with Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency, leaving him without a femur in his right leg, Lahna was limited in his mobility as a young child. At the age of 20, he was fitted with a real prosthetic, and within five years, he rode his first bike. Lahna credits the Challenged Athletes Foundation for supporting his elite triathlon career.
Denver, Colo, PTWC
A retired U.S. Army veteran, Sanborn made his Paralympic debut at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. During his Army career, Sanborn served 15 years as an Airborne Ranger and a demonstrator on the U.S. Army Parachute Team, The Golden Knights. He competed in triathlon as an age group athlete during his service with the Army. After sustaining an injury, the nonprofit Dare2tri helped him transition from a triathlete to a paratriathlete where he has excelled at the elite level.
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