Megan Fisher
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Born | Alberta, Canada | March 1, 1983||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bildung | University of Montana University of Washington | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5'4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 133 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
|
Megan Fisher (born March 1, 1983) is a Canadian-American Paralympic athlete. She has won one gold, two silver, and one bronze medal for Team USA at the Paralympic Games.
Early life and education
[edit]Fisher grew up as an only child near Calgary, Alberta. After her parents separated, she moved to Hinsdale, Illinois, with her mother and divided her time with her father.[1]
Fisher was a walk-on at the University of Montana's NCAA Division 1 tennis team, which she played during her freshman year.[2][3] While driving with her friend back to school for their sophomore year on June 30, 2002, they were both injured in a car accident. After being pulled out of the car by a witness, Fisher's left leg was amputated; her friend died due to her injuries.[2] Less than a year after the accident, Fisher returned to the University of Montana and competed in a triathlon following a second leg surgery.[2]
Career
[edit]Fisher met Paralympic cyclist Sam Kavanaugh, who inspired her to begin competing in para-cycling and eventually the USA Paralympic team.[4] In 2010, Fisher competed in the TRI-5 classification and won the International Triathlon Union Paratriathlon World Championship in Budapest, Hungary, and won the 2010 USA Paratriathlon National Championship in the TRI-5 division.[4] She also became the first female lower-leg amputee to complete an XTERRA off-road triathlon.[5]
Prior to leaving for the 2012 Summer Paralympics, Fisher began studying for her doctorate in physical therapy at the University of Washington.[5] In London, she competed in Paralympic cycling, winning both a gold and silver medal.[6] Her gold medal came in the C4 time trial and her silver in the track pursuit.[7]
The next year, Fisher won gold in the C4 classification at the 2013 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships.[8] As a result of winning the 2013 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships, her third world championship title, Fisher was honored by the United States Olympic Committee as USOC Athlete of the Month.[9] She was later named to Team USA's 2015 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships roster.[10]
In 2016, Fisher was selected to compete with Team USA at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, where she won a silver medal after losing to teammate Shawn Morelli in the C4 road timed trial.[11] She also ended the games with a bronze medal in the 3000M individual pursuit.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ Chandler, Claire (August 24, 2016). "Racing to Rio". montanakaimin.com. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ a b c Dundas, Chad. "A Leg To Stand On". archive.umt.edu. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Shawn Newton (April 8, 2019). "Megan Fisher Under the Big Sky". kpax.com. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
Prior to the car accident, Megan competed as an NCAA Division I tennis player.
- ^ a b Cederberg, Jenna (October 4, 2012). "Missoula native recalls journey to gold". Missoulian. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ a b Kato, Dillon (September 4, 2016). "Missoula's Megan Fisher heads to Rio to defend Paralympic gold". Missoulian. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Greene, Erin (September 13, 2013). "Great Britain dominates at Paratriathlon World Championships". triathlon.org. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Hersh, Philip (September 5, 2012). "Paralympic gold for Hinsdale cyclist Fisher". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
- ^ "USA grab 12 golds at UCI's Road Cycling Worlds". paralympic.org. September 2, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ "Paratriathlete Megan Fisher named USOC Female Athlete of the Month". teamusa.org. October 9, 2013. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Branham, Katie (June 10, 2015). "Team USA named for 2015 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships". teamusa.org. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ "Rio Paralympics: 18 Para-cyclists Crowned in Time Trial Events". uci.org. September 15, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ "Recap Day One: Team USA Wins Two Gold Medals". wheelchairsportsfederation.org. September 9, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
External links
[edit]- Living people
- 1983 births
- American female cyclists
- Cyclists from Alberta
- Canadian emigrants to the United States
- University of Montana alumni
- Paralympic bronze medalists for the United States
- Paralympic silver medalists for the United States
- Paralympic gold medalists for the United States
- Cyclists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics
- Cyclists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic medalists in cycling
- Paralympic cyclists for the United States
- 21st-century American sportswomen