PARIS, France — Multiple athletes from Oregon will go for the gold at the 2024 Paralympic Games. The competition started on Wednesday, Aug. 28 and runs through Sunday, Sept. 8.
Paris is hosting the Paralympics for the first time. More than 4,000 athletes from around the world will compete for medals in 549 events and in 22 different sports.
Below is a look at the athletes with Oregon connections who have qualified for the 2024 Paralympic Games. Meanwhile, there are 11 athletes from Washington who will also compete.
Wheelchair basketball
Lindsey Zurbrugg, a 25-year-old from Portland, will compete in wheelchair basketball. Zurbrugg won bronze with the U.S. women during the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. Zurbrugg was paralyzed after injuring her back at a basketball camp.
Para-cycling
Dennis Connors is a para-cycler from Beaverton. The 39-year-old was in the U.S. Marine Corps for nine years and experienced multiple traumatic brain injuries while serving three combat tours in Iraq. Connors also had a stroke in 2020. He's a five-time international World Cup winner, a two-time world championship medalist and a four-time National Champion. Connors has also been a member of the U.S. para-climbing team and won a national championship in 2022.
Para-rowing
Todd Vogt, 49, is a para-rower who trains in Portland. He was diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson's disease in 2018, which mostly impacts the left side of his body. Vogt will be competing in the Mixed Double Sculls in his division. He won silver at the 2023 world championships.
Wheelchair tennis
Maylee Phelps of Portland will compete in wheelchair tennis. It will be the 17-year-old's first Paralympic Games. She placed second in the 2024 Roland Garros junior wheelchair tournament, and was named the 2023 Junior Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year. Phelps also achieved the world no. 2 junior ranking in 2023. She won gold in women's doubles at the 2023 Parapan American Games in Santiago, Chile.
Para-swimming
Abbas Karimi is a para-swimmer who is competing in his second Paralympic Games. He used to train in Oregon. Karimi competed in Tokyo as part of the Refugee Paralympic Team and was one of the flagbearers. The 27-year-old was born without arms, and began swimming in Kabul, Afghanistan where he was born. He fled the country when he was 16 and he eventually relocated to Portland. Karimi moved to Florida when pools in Oregon closed in 2020 due to the pandemic. He competed in the 2022 world championships and won gold with the U.S. 4x50-meter medley relay team.
