COLORADO — Athletes from across Colorado have qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Olympics get underway on Friday, July 26 with the opening ceremony.
Below is a list of the Coloradans who will be representing Team USA, the sport they play, and where they're from. News5 will continue to update this list as more Colorado athletes qualify for the Paris games.
Sophia Smith | Soccer | Windsor
Smith is headed to her first Olympic Games. She attended Fossil Ridge High School in Fort Collins.
Keith Sanderson | Shooting | Hometown - Colorado Springs
U.S. Army Olympian SFC Keith Sanderson is a three time Olympian who competed in the 2008 games in Beijing, the 2012 games in London, and the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.
Christopher Blevins | Cycling | Durango
Blevins is returning to the Olympics this year with a goal to medal.
Valarie Allman | Track and Field| Hometown - Longmont
Allman, 29, won the women's discus final at the Olympic Trails in June by more than eight meters, securing her spot in the Paris Olympics.
Riley Amos | Cycling | Durango
At 22 years old, Amos is going to the Olympic stage for the first time.
Wyndham Clark | Golf | Denver
In May 2023, Clark won the Wells Fargo Championship, his first PGA Tour win. One month later, he won the 2023 U.S. Open.
Woody Kincaid | Track and Field | Littleton
Kincaid, 31, is going back to the Olympics after finishing 14th at the 2020 Tokyo Games in the 5,000-meter race, and 15th in the 10,000-meter race.
Natalia Grossman | Sport Climbing | Hometown - Boulder
Grossman, who graduated from the University of Colorado-Boulder in 2022, first began climbing when she was six years old. She qualified for Paris after winning gold at the Pan American Games Santiago 2023.
Brooke Raboutou | Sport Climbing | Boulder
Raboutou was the first climber in the United States to qualify for the Olympic Games and now she is back for round two.
Colin Duffy | Sport Climbing | Broomfield
Duffy, 20, is returning to the Olympics after coming in seventh in the combined competition at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Val Constien | Track and Field | Edwards
At 28 years old, Constien, a CU Boulder grad, set an Olympic Trials record in the steeplechase final in late June. She finished in 9 minutes and 3.22 seconds. It was also her personal best time.
Elise Cranny | Track and Field | Niwot
On June 24, defending USATF champion Cranny and Elle St. Pierre battled it out in the 5,000-meter race, with Cranny finishing just .02 seconds after St. Pierre.
Canyon Barry | Basketball 3X3 | Hometown - Colorado Springs
Athlete of the Week: Colorado Springs native Canyon Barry
The four-man team consists of Cheyenne Mountain Alum Canyon Barry, Jimmer Fredette, Kareem Maddox, and Dylan Travis. arry a Colorado Springs native, and Cheyenne Mountain alum returned to Colorado Springs in 2023 to pursue the 3x3 National team competing in the Paris Games.
Mallory Swanson | Soccer | Littleton
Swanson, 26, was born in Littleton and raised in Highlands Ranch. She attended Mountain Vista High School and graduated in 2016.
Anna Hall | Track and Field | Denver
Just six months after Hall, 23, had knee surgery, she made an incredible comeback to secure her spot in the heptathlon at the Paris Olympics.
Lindsey Horan | Soccer | Golden
Midfielder Lindsey Horan, who was born in Wheat Ridge and lives in Golden, first made headlines when she became the first American woman to skip college and head straight to the pros after high school, according to Team USA. She played with Paris Saint Germain in France for four years before returning to the United States.
Olivia Cummins | Cycling | Fort Collins
Cummins, pictured second from the right in the photo above, has been racing on the road since she was five years old. Cummins is a student at Colorado Mesa University.
Leonard Korir | Track and Field | Hometown - Colorado Springs
Korir was born in Kenya and moved to the United States in 2009 knowing little English phrases and carrying just a single suitcase, Team USA reported. When he turned 20 years old, he began running competitively, and he has since soared in the sport.
Haleigh Washington | Volleyball | Denver
After winning gold at her first Olympics in 2021, Washington, 28, is returning with many of the same teammates to defend the title in 2024. USA Volleyball announced its 12 players for the Olympic Games in early June.
Rajeev Ram | Tennis | Denver
Ram is a two time Olympian, competing at the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro, and the 2020 games in Tokyo. In 2016, Ram won silver in mixed doubles.
Emma Weber | Swimming | Denver
Weber, a rising senior at the University of Virginia, is headed to the Olympics for the first time. In the Olympic Trials on June 17, she finished a 100-meter breaststroke in 1:06.37, taking second place, according to USA Swimming.
Jordyn Poulter | Volleyball | Hometown - Aurora
Poulter, a 26-year-old setter, has experience in every major volleyball tournament in the United States, including the FIVB Volleyball Nations League, FIVB World Cup and NORCCA Women’s Continental Championship, Team USA reported. She brought home silver and gold in many of those competitions throughout the years.
Savilia Blunk | Cycling | Durango
For about a decade, Blunk has climbed in the ranks of mountain biking, USA Cycling reported. Now, she has reached the top rung: The Paris Olympics.
Grant Koontz | Cycling | Nederland
Koontz, who was born in Texas and calls Nederland home, was given a new bike instead of a car for his 16th birthday — a joke of sorts by his parents. They couldn't have known that Koontz would ride it straight into a life-long passion.
Morgan Pearson | Triathlon | Boulder
Pearson, a University of Colorado Boulder graduate, grew up as a competitive swimmer and ocean lifeguard in Spring Lake, New Jersey.
Jessica Thoennes | Rowing | Highlands Ranch
Thoennes is headed to the Olympic Games after winning gold in the pair event at the 2024 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Team Trials. She competes in the women's pair (2-) boat class.
Elizabeth Marks | Paralympic swimming | Colorado Springs
SFC Marks joined the U.S. Army in 2008 just after she turned 17 years old, and while in Iraq as a combat medic, she sustained bilateral hip injuries, according to Team USA.
Eric Newby | Wheelchair rugby | Bailey
Newby, 36, is returning for his third Paralympics this year, after winning the silver medal in both 2016 and 2021 in the mixed team event.
Josh O'Neill | Wheelchair rugby | Colorado Springs
O'Neill, 36, has competed at the highest level of wheelchair rugby for just a few years, but has already made a huge impact, including the team's recent win at the 2023 Parapan American Games Santiago.
Howie Sanborn | Paratriathlon | Denver
Sanborn, a retired U.S. Army veteran, served for 15 years. During that time, he began competing as an able-bodied person in triathlons. In September 2012, he was hit by a driver while biking. He broke his back and was paralyzed from the waist down, according to Team USA.
Morgan Stickney | Paralympic swimming | Colorado Springs
With two gold medals already under her belt, Stickney, 27, is ready to compete in Paris.
The Associated Press contributed to this web story.
___
CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Dog sets house on fire, CSFD issues safety reminder
The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) has issued a reminder about fire safety, after a dog was caught turning a stove on, on camera that started a small fire.
____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
