Fans of the North Carolina Tar Heels still have a chance to cheer on another Tar Heel in Paris. The Paralympics begin on August 29 (with the Opening Ceremony on August 28) and run through September 8, with the Closing Ceremony that same evening.

On September 1 and 2, former Army medic and North Carolina University graduate Kelly Elmlinger will compete in the women’s PTS4 category of para-triathlon. For those who don’t know, the International Paralympic Committee classifies PTS4 as follows:

“Moderate impairments. In both cycling and running, amputee athletes may use approved prosthetics or other assistive devices. This includes athletes with comparable activity limitations and an impairment that includes, but is not limited to, limb weakness, hypertonia, ataxia and/or athetosis, limited muscle strength, or limited range of motion.”

– World Triathlon

Kelly Elmlinger served as a medic in the Combat Aviation Unit of the 82nd Airborne Division. She deployed with the 82nd three times, once to Afghanistan and twice to Iraq. Her unit’s specialty was downed aircraft recovery, a job that unfortunately required her to recover the remains of soldiers from plane crashes and shot downs. There is little rescue in this mission, most of the time it is just recovery.

While at Fort Liberty, Elmlinger attended North Carolina and graduated with a degree in orthopedic nursing in 2010. She moved to San Antonio to work as an Army nurse at Brooks Army Medical Center (BAMC), turning her attention from battlefield care to long-term care at a military treatment facility. She applied for a position on the orthopedic ward, where she treated soldiers with catastrophic injuries, including several amputees.

Ironically, doctors at BAMC discovered that some of the persistent pain in her left shin was caused by synovial sarcoma, a rare form of soft tissue cancer. Suddenly, Elmlinger went from being a nurse to being a patient in her own hospital.

The good news? She was surrounded by colleagues and friends.

Always an athlete, Elmlinger became a tough, resilient paratrooper. She initially did not want to amputate her leg and instead underwent procedures to remove the cancer while saving her leg. After the initial surgeries, she was able to compete in the 2014 and 2015 Department of Defense Warrior Games, but over time her quality of life deteriorated along with her left leg. Elmlinger said the following about her decision to amputate her leg:

“When I first started competing, I was still trying to figure out who I was: a new identity, a wounded warrior, an adaptive athlete. All these different things; I didn’t even know what my abilities were… I knew there was more. There was more in me. More in my potential, more in what I could do and give back to others. I wanted to do everything I could to keep my leg before I said I was done. It took a while to get there, but I was carrying baggage.”

Elmlinger competed in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics (which will take place in 2021 due to Covid-19). At that time, the Paralympics did not have a race in the PTS4 classification, so she competed in the more difficult PTS5 classification. Despite the disadvantage, Elmlinger finished an impressive seventh in the field.

This year, Elmlinger will compete in the Paralympics for the first time as a PTS4 and has just won nine races in a row, including the 2023 World Championships. She should have a good chance of a medal in Paris.

Good luck to Kelly Elmlinger for reminding us that it’s always a great day to be a Tar Heel.

If you have time, listen to Kelly Elmlinger talk about her experiences in the military, medicine, and the Paralympics.