Jaleen Roberts earned a gold medal at the 2019 world championships as part of Team USA's 4x100 meter universal relay.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Today 54 athletes - 34 men and 20 women - were named to the 2020 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Team. The roster includes 37 Paralympians and 20 Paralympic medalists, while also showcasing multiple reigning world champions.
“I’m really excited about this national team’s depth,” said Joaquim Cruz, head coach of U.S. Paralympics Track & Field. “Top to bottom, we have a great roster. It’s also a nice mix of Paralympic champions and Paralympic hopefuls. It’s obviously an important year with Tokyo 2020 right around the corner, and I think we have an excellent team lined up.”
Of the 53 athletes named, 12 are current world champions - Jeremy Campbell (Peyton, Texas), Josh Cinnamo (Lakeville, Minnesota), Breanna Clark (Los Angeles, California), Lex Gillette (Raleigh, North Carolina), Sam Grewe (Middlebury, Indiana), Noah Malone (Fishers, Indiana), Ray Martin (Jersey City, New Jersey), Brittni Mason (Richmond Heights, Ohio), Jaleen Roberts (Kent, Washington), Daniel Romanchuk (Mount Airy, Maryland), Roderick Townsend-Roberts (Stockton, California), and Deja Young (Mesquite, Texas).
Three newcomers make their national team debut after standout 2019 campaigns. Sophie Munter (Spokane, Washington), a U.S. Paralympics Track and Field High School All-American, joins the team after an impressive performance at the junior world championships. Sydney Barta (Arlington, Virginia) earned gold medals in both the 100 and 200 T45-64 at the junior world championships and gold in the women’s 200 T64 at the 2019 Parapan American Games, catapulting her to the national spotlight.
Rounding out the rookie squad is Brittni Mason (Richmond Heights, Ohio), a sprinter at Eastern Michigan University, who made her Team USA debut at last year’s world championships, where she earned gold and set the world record in the women’s 100 T47.
The season kicks off in March with a series of World Para Athletics Grand Prix events, including a stop in Mesa, Arizona, at the Desert Challenge Games in April.
The U.S. Paralympic Team Trials will be held June 25-28 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where the athletes who will represent Team USA in Tokyo will be named. The Paralympic Games will be held Aug. 25 - Sept. 6.
2020 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Team
* Denotes U.S. Paralympian
^ Denotes 2019 world champion
Name | Hometown | Class |
---|---|---|
Jerome Avery* | Lemoore, Calif. | Guide Athlete |
Femita Ayanbeku* | Taunton, Mass. | T64 |
Sydney Barta | Arlington, Va. | T64/F64 |
David Blair* | Eagle Mountain, Utah | F44 |
Michael Brannigan* | East Northport, N.Y. | T20 |
David Brown* | St. Louis, Mo. | T11 |
Jeremy Campbell*^ | Peyton, Texas | F64 |
Josh Cinnamo^ | Lakeville, Minn. | F46 |
Breanna Clark*^ | Los Angeles, Calif. | T20 |
Kym Crosby* | Yuba City, Calif. | T13 |
Aj Digby* | Tontogany, Ohio | T62 |
Tobi Fawehinmi* | Arlington, Texas | T46 |
Ezra Frech | Los Angeles, Calif. | T63 |
Katrina Gerhard | Natick, Mass. | T54 |
Lex Gillette*^ | Raleigh, N.C. | T11 |
Sam Grewe*^ | Middlebury, Ind. | T63 |
Alexa Halko* | Williamsburg, Va. | T34 |
Beatriz Hatz | Lakewood, Colo. | T64 |
Jessica Heims* | Swisher, Iowa | F64 |
Kevan Hueftle | Eustis, Neb. | T64 |
Gianfranco Iannotta* | Garfield, N.J. | T52 |
Desmond Jackson* | Durham, N.C. | T63 |
Isaac Jean-Paul | Grayslake, Ill. | T13 |
Noelle Lambert | Manchester, N.H. | T63 |
Hagan Landry | Delcambre, La. | F41 |
Cheri Madsen* | Union, Neb. | T54 |
Noah Malone^ | Fishers, Ind. | T12 |
Ray Martin*^ | Jersey City, N.J. | T52 |
Brittni Mason^ | Richmond Heights, Ohio | T46 |
Chelsea McClammer* | Benton City, Wash. | T54 |
Tatyana McFadden* | Clarksville, Md. | T54 |
Amanda McGrory* | Kennett Square, Penn. | T54 |
Trenten Merrill* | San Juan Capistrano, Calif. | T64 |
Cassie Mitchell* | Atlanta, Ga. | F51 |
Sophie Munter | Spokane, Wash. | T34 |
Justin Phongsavanh | Des Moines, Iowa | F54 |
Aaron Pike* | Park Rapids, Minn. | T54 |
Markeith Price* | Towson, Md. | T13 |
David Prince* | Marietta, Ga. | T64 |
Luis Puertas | Orlando, Fla. | T61 |
Isaiah Rigo | Cheney, Wash. | T52 |
Jaleen Roberts^ | Kent, Wash. | T37 |
Nick Rogers* | Bingham, Maine | T62 |
Daniel Romanchuk*^ | Mount Airy, Md. | T54 |
Susannah Scaroni* | Tekoa, Wash. | T54 |
Scot Severn* | Caro, Mich. | F53 |
Brian Siemann* | Savoy, Ill. | T53 |
Roderick Townsend*^ | Stockton, Calif. | T46 |
Jarryd Wallace* | Athens, Ga. | T64 |
Taleah Williams* | Norfolk, Neb. | T47 |
Wes Williams* | Visalia, Calif. | Guide Athlete |
Michael Wishnia* | Chapin, S.C. | F57 |
Deja Young*^ | Mesquite, Texas | T46 |
Marshall Zackery | Ocala, Fla. | T35 |