Ali Truewit was attacked by a shark and had part of her leg amputated, and is now competing for Paralympic gold.

Last year, Ali Truewit was on holiday with friends on the British island of Turks and Caicos, off Central America, when she was attacked by a shark in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The 24-year-old swimmer had to have part of her leg amputated and will compete in the Paralympic Games next year, aiming to win gold.

“I love stories with unexpected twists and turns, and I relied on them to maintain a certain unrealistic hope – fighting a shark, surviving, losing a limb and making it to the Paralympics – all in one year,” Ali told NBC News.

It all happened on May 24, 2023, when the young woman was returning by boat after swimming with friends in the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. The shark began to surround her until it attacked her foot and leg. “My first thought was, ‘Am I crazy or do I have no legs?’ It was a very difficult image for me to process, but I had to act quickly,” she recalled.

There she was taken straight to a hospital in Miami, where on her 23rd birthday she underwent two surgeries to fight infections and a third to amputate half her leg.

Despite the injury – he needed psychological help and physical therapy – he quickly focused on working and recovering to prepare for the Paralympic trials. “I don’t usually wait to not let fear rule my life. I lost a lot, but I didn’t want to lose my love for the water,” explained Truewit, who returned to the pools to compete three months after surgery.

“I was really curious about how I would feel when I got back into the pool and competed. The harder I worked, the more the pain went away.”

In qualifying for the U.S. Paralympic team, Ali Truewit won the 100-meter backstroke, 100-meter freestyle and 400-meter freestyle. “I think hearing my name on that team was just a reminder that I’m stronger than I think, that we’re all stronger than we think.”