Sarah Reinertsen

She did it! Last October, the 29-year-old Solana Beach resident became the first above-the-knee female amputee to finish the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Hawaii. Reinertsen—a native New Yorker who was a sports reporter for NBC prior to becoming national spokesperson for the Challenged Athletes Foundation in Del Mar—has long been a role model for disabled athletes the world over. Since 1991, she’s run seven marathons and set several world records. But with her Ironman victory, she’s taken it up a notch. As she says on her Web site, “When you believe, you can do anything.”
 

Sarah Reinertsen is a woman defined by courage to overcome, achieve and give back to the world that gave her strength. When she discovered her opportunities, she never looked back and has dedicated her life to reaching new heights and sharing with others not to accept limitations others set before them. She is an athlete, a role model, a journalist and an advocate of changing perception.
She is lives by the mantra - Don’t ever give up on what you believe in. Not once. Not ever.

Born Different – No where to turn
She was born “different”. Her left leg was deformed with a condition called, proximal femoral focal deficiency (PFFD). To even the length of her legs, Sarah had to wear a leg brace starting at the age of 11 months. She maneuvered around on the stiff leg brace until she was 7 years old when the decision was made to amputate the leg. She was a Brownie. She was a great student. She had a smile that would light up a room. But still, she was “different”. And every day at gym class, that was never more apparent. She always came in last on field day. She was always picked last on the team. Her teachers and coaches did not include her in regular play with the other kids. Instead, she would kick the ball against the wall. Alone. Sadly, Sarah accepted this as her fate and did nothing to change it.

Life changed for Sarah when she was 11 and went to her first track meet for other kids with disabilities. For the first time, Sarah was lined up next to other girls like her. They were missing their legs too – When the gun went off for that 100 meters, she ran hard and finished first. For the first time in her life she won. The discovery that she could be an athlete was the defining moment in her life. Her world all of a sudden opened up to an area that she never thought would be a possibility for her. But how could a girl without a leg be an athlete?

The Athlete – Blazing the trail
Sarah never looked back. She knew that she was good. She knew that the only way to make sure other little girls born “different” did not kick the ball against the wall, was to show them how to be an athlete. Most people have role models as a guide to what is possible. When Sarah looked around, she discovered that there weren’t other women missing their leg above the knee running. In fact, there were very few amputees of any age running. Who would show her the way and how could she do this on a prosthetic leg made for walking?

This is Sarah’s true “difference”. The only way for her to help other little girls was to be the first. It didn’t take long. Since 1991, she has set world records in the 100m, 200m, 400m in her division (T42) and became the youngest member of the 1992 US Paralympic Team to go to Barcelona. After dominating track, Sarah turned her attention to road racing, competing in 5kms, 10kms, and eventually, the pinnacle race for any runner, the 26.2-mile marathon. To date Sarah has conquered 7 marathons and several _ marathons. She is the world record holder in the half marathon (2:12) and the marathon (5:27) for above-knee amputee women.

Technology – Going faster
As an original member of Team Flex Foot, Sarah was one of the first amputees to test out a new running foot that would result in a technological breakthrough in prosthetics. When she tested the foot, she took over 37 minutes off her marathon time. This new energy storing carbon fiber foot would open the door for many amputees of all ages to do something they had never done before. Run. As a test patient, Sarah used her abilities as an elite athlete to fine tune the product and revolutionize the sport of running for amputees. No longer using her walking prosthesis to run, now she could focus on bigger goals.
 

Raising the Bar – Tougher than the rest
Ironman. 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and a 26.2-mile run. It’s one of the toughest races in the world. To finish, Sarah has to be tougher than the rest. She expends 40% more oxygen and twice the energy than a person with two legs. Every stroke, every peddle on the bike, every step she runs has to be fine tuned to perfection. She will be the first, the only amputee woman to complete the Ironman in Kona. Only two years ago, she had never been on a bike. Her swim was fair at best. But she worked. And worked hard to qualify for the coveted spot. Currently, Sarah trains over 20 hours a week to accomplish this goal.
 

Once again, Sarah will break new ground and go where no amputee woman has gone before. Ironman.
 

Born Different – a powerful gift
Sarah has devoted her life to overcome being “different”. What she has discovered is that her difference has nothing to do with her missing left leg. It’s the ability to be first and not fear what has never been done. By learning to run as an amputee when no one told her how. By helping to develop advanced prosthetics that would bring more amputees to the sport of running. By being the world record holder in numerous running events. By being the first amputee woman to conquer Ironman. Sarah has dared to do what no one before her ever did.
 

That’s her difference.
 

Sarah Reinertsen is a National Spokesperson for the Challenged Athletes Foundation. Her role is to inspire and provide guidance to others with physical challenges that when you believe, you can do anything.