Multi-Sports Icon Turns Adversity into Triumph; Sights Set on 2018 Winter Paralympics

St. Cloud, Minn. – Six years ago on this day, December 13, 2008, Mike Schultz was competing at an ISOC National Snocross race and suffered a tragic accident that cost him his leg above the knee. While this would have been a career ending injury to other athletes, Schultz returned to the national stage seven months later and won silver at the X Games in Adaptive Motocross. Six years later, Schultz has won six gold medals in both motocross and snocross and a recent gold medal at the International Paralympic Committee World Cup snowboarding banked slalom event.

Mike Schultz adds a career highlight today as he joins the elite group of world-class athletes on the U.S. Paralympic Snowboard Team. “This new venture is quite different for me since I don’t have a set of handlebars to hang onto,” Schultz said about snowboarding. “It’s crazy where this road has taken me in the last several years. I was at the point where I thought my competition days were over and now I have the opportunity to travel the world and compete in a totally different sport.”

Schultz traveled to Holland in November to compete in his first international event and won gold. “I’ve learned that you have to at least check out every opportunity that comes by, and now I have the chance to compete for a Paralympic gold medal in a couple years. Some opportunities won’t develop into anything, but some can change the course of your life in the best possible way.”

In addition to competing in the Adaptive Boardercross competition at this year’s Winter X Games in Aspen, Schultz will also compete in Adaptive Snocross as the returning four-time champion with a chance of making the podium in two separate events.

For more information on Mike Schultz, log on to www.monstermikeschultz.com.