After sacrificing both his legs, a thumb and parts of several fingers and suffering extensive internal injuries in an IED explosion, Marine Sgt. Zach Stinson was shocked to learned he wasn’t injured enough to qualify for the maximum time advantage as a para-triathlete.
 
Having fought all the way back from his catastrophic battlefield injuries sustained in 2010, the Afghanistan veteran was competing in elite-level paratriathlon events on an international stage. For any athlete, the 750-meter swim, 20 kilometers of cycling and the 5-kilometer wheelchair “run” is grueling.