Female Amputee Iraq Veteran World Class Athlete

No dream too big for disabled vet
Pantagraph.com
Lenore Sobota
March 31, 2014

Army veteran Melissa Stockwell won the
paratriathlon world championship
in 2012 in New Zealand.
She will speak Tuesday at Illinois State University.

NORMAL — Army veteran Melissa Stockwell has overcome losing a leg in Iraq to represent the United States at the Paralympics and become a world champion paratriathlete.

Her message to others is: “They can do the same. No dream is too big.”

She will deliver that message Tuesday at Illinois State University as part of Science and Technology Week.

“It's my story – losing my limb in Iraq and … obstacles that have been overcome,” Stockwell said of her talk, “Baghdad to Beijing and Beyond.”

Stockwell was 24-year-old lieutenant when her humvee hit a roadside bomb April 13, 2004. Her leg was amputated above the knee.

While recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, she swam for therapy. Swimming felt natural to her. It was easy to slip into the pool and she liked her time in the water.

“It made me feel whole again,” Stockwell said.
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