US amputee athletes have routinely used the Parapan American Games as a springboard to Paralympic glory. Recent Paralympic medalists such as Jeremy Campbell, Josh Cinnamo, Trenten Merrill, Jarryd Wallace, and Matthew Torres won their first international medals at the Parapan Games. Ezra Frech, the current world record-holder in the high jump (T63) and a likely medalist at the 2024 Paralympics, made his international debut with four medals at the 2019 Parapan Am Games in Lima, Peru. Jerome Singleton, who in 2011 became the first runner ever to beat Oscar Pistorius in a race, achieved his first podium at the 2007 Parapan Ams in Rio de Janeiro.
Because of that history, we scanned the list of winners at the just-concluded 2023 Parapan American Games in Santiago, Chile, for clues about who’s poised to excel in Paris next year. More than two dozen US amputees won medals in Santiago, contributing to Team USA’s overall haul of 166 medals (second only to Brazil among the 31 participating nations). A handful of those amputee athletes put on the type of dominating performances that have foreshadowed Paralympic success in the past.
To be clear, the Parapan Games aren’t the only stepping stone to the Paralympic podium. Far from it. But they’re a tried-and-true portal. Read about five of Team USA’s most noteworthy Santiago winners below, then scroll all the way down for the full list of every American amputee who brought home a medal from the Parapan Games.
Beatriz Hatz, track and field (T64)
These were Hatz’s second Parapan Games; she first appeared in 2019 as a teenager and won a couple of silver medals. This year she won a couple of golds (in the long jump and the 100m), along with a silver and a bronze. This more emphatic statement comes on the heels of Hatz’s podium near-miss at the 2023 Worlds this summer (4th in the long jump) and an adjustment to a lighter running blade just before the Parapans began. Unlike the other competitors on this list, Hatz has already competed in the Paralympics; she finished 5th in the long jump and 6th in both the 100 and 200 meters in Tokyo. All three of those events look like legit medal opportunities for her in Paris.
Bobby Body, power lifting (107 kg)
With the possible exception of Hatz, the aptly named Body seems the likeliest person on this list to get to the podium in Paris next summer. He took the gold medal in Santiago with a lift of 228 kilograms (502 pounds), one kg shy of the American record set by Antonio Deandre Martin last October. A 228 kg lift would have fallen just short of the podium in 2021 Tokyo Games, but Body’s on a sharply upward trajectory—his lift in Santiago was 18 kg higher than his previous best, a 210 kg hoist at the 2023 Worlds in Dubai back in September. In other words, he achieved a 9 percent improvement in just two months. And Body only joined Team USA in 2021, so he probably still hasn’t unlocked his full potential. The United States hasn’t won a Paralympic powerlifting medal since the 2000 Games. Body’s name, physique, and (now) competitive track record all suggest the podium drought might finally end in 2024.
Miguel Jimenez-Vergara and Evan Correll, track and field (T54)
Both of these wheelchair racers are textbook cases of the Parapan-to-Paralympics pipeline. The 2023 Parapans were Correll’s first international event and Jimenez-Vergara’s second, and both took full advantage of the opportunity. Jimenez-Vergara won a gold medal in the 1500m and silvers in the 5000m and 800m, while Correll took gold in the 5000m and bronze medals in 100m and 400m. The top American in the T54 classification, Daniel Romanchuk, didn’t appear in the Parapans this year. But he, like Jimenez-Vergara and Correll, won his first international medals at the Parapans (the 2015 Games). Romanchuk parlayed that success into a spot on the following year’s Paralympic roster and, eventually, Paralympic gold in the 2020 Tokyo Games. Neither Correll nor Jimenez-Vergara is a serious threat to medal in Paris, but both have placed themselves on a trajectory similar to Romanchuk’s by using the Parapan Games as a coming-out party. We’ll be paying attention.
Cali Prochaska, swimming (S9/SM9/SB8)
After just missing the medal stand at the 2019 Parapans, Prochaska put on a very impressive show in Santiago with two golds, a silver, and a bronze. Normally a distance specialist, she medaled in two shorter races (the 100m butterfly and breaststroke) in addition to the 200m individual medley and 400m freestyle. Prochaska’s versatility would seem to give her an edge over two similar US swimmers, Mei Mei White (who won a gold and a bronze) and Keegan Knott (one gold, one silver, one bronze), when it’s time to set the Paris roster. Prochaska has a chance to further distinguish herself at next month’s national championship meet in Orlando (December 15-17).
All US Amputee Medalists at the 2023 Parapan American Games
ATHLETICS
Sydney Barta (T64): Gold, 200m; Silver, 100m
Zachary Blair (T64): Bronze, 100m
Josh Cinnamo (F46): Gold, shotput
Evan Correll (T54): Gold, 5000m; Bronze, 400m; Bronze, 100m
Christy Gardner (F57): Silver, shotput
Jonathan Gore (T64): Silver, 100m
Alicia Guerrero (F64): Bronze, discus
Beatriz Hatz (F64): Gold, long jump; Gold, 100m; Silver, 200m; bronze, 4x100m universal relay
Jessica Heims (F64): Silver, discus
Miguel Jimenez-Vergara (T54): Gold, 1500m; Silver, 5000m; Silver, 800m
Max Rohn (F64): Silver, discus
SWIMMING
David Gelfand (S9): Bronze, 100m butterfly
Mikaela Jenkins (S10): Silver, 100m butterfly
Keegan Knott (S9/SM9): Gold, 400m freestyle; Silver, 200m medley; bronze, 100m backstroke
Jack O’Neil (S8): Silver, 100m backstroke; Silver, 4×100 freestyle relay mixed; Silver, 4×100 medley relay mixed
Cali Prochaska (S9/SM9/SB8): Gold, 100m butterfly; Gold, 200m medley; Silver, 400m freestyle; Bronze, 100m breaststroke
Haven Shepherd (SM8): Gold, 200m medley
Natalie Sims (S9): Silver, 100m freestyle; Silver, 4x100m freestyle relay
Mei Mei White (S9/SB8): Gold, 100m breaststroke; bronze, 400m freestyle
CYCLING
Samantha Bosco: Gold, C1-5 time trial; Bronze, C4-5 road race
Freddie de los Santos: Gold, H3-5 road race
ARCHERY
Eric Bennett: Gold, mixed team recurve open (with Candice Caesar); Silver, individual recurve
Wendy Gardner: Gold, mixed team compound open (with Kevin Polish); Bronze, individual compound
POWERLIFTING
Bobby Body (107kg): Gold
SHOOTING
Stetson Barfield: Gold, R5 mixed 10m air rifle prone SH2
Kevin Nguyen: Bronze, R6 mixed 50m rifle prone SH1
TEAM SPORTS
Wheelchair Rugby (mixed): Gold
Wheelchair Basketball (women): Gold