Gretsch earns silver in para triathlon, her seventh Paralympic medal
Downers Grove native Kendall Gretsch earned a silver medal in women’s PTWC para triathlon Monday at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
The medal is the seventh Paralympic medal won by Gretsch, 32, who lives and trains in Colorado Springs, Colo., as a professional athlete.
A four-time Paralympian born with spina bifida, Gretsch completed the course at Pont Alexandre III in 1 hour, 7 minutes, 46 seconds. Australia’s Lauren Parker finished in 1:06.23.
“Any time we race against each other I know it's going to be a hard race,” Gretsch told Team USA representatives.
“Today it was no exception. This course is phenomenal. I gave everything I could today and also the past three years leading into this. That was the best I could do. I am just so proud of everything I did to get here. That's all you can ask for,” Gretsch said.
Athletes competing in PTWC para triathlon use a recumbent handcycle on the bike course and a racing wheelchair on the run segment, according to World Triathlon.
The field on Monday competed in a 750-meter swim in the Seine River, a 20-kilometer handcycle race, and a 5K sprint in a racing wheelchair.
Gretsch won gold in the event at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. She won a gold medal in biathlon and another in cross-country skiing at the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. Gretsch won gold, silver and bronze medals at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.
Gretsch was among eight American paratriathletes who medaled on Monday, the best team performance in Paralympic history, Team USA said.
“This is the perfect weather for a race,” Gretsch said. “I was a little worried it might be too hot or a little cold. But this is ideal conditions and you couldn't ask for a better venue.”
She said after “an intense three years” she will take a break from training until November when she starts to prepare for Nordic events at the 2026 Paralympic Games Milano Cortina.
“It's a really good mental break in the winter to have a full break away from triathlon,” Gretsch said. “I come back charged and ready to go for the season. It's a little bit unconventional, but for me it really works. It's something I never have a regret about, I always feel like it's what's best for me.”
Also on Monday, Naperville native Sarah Adam and the United States’ national wheelchair rugby team earned a silver medal, falling 48-41 to Japan in the gold medal game at Champ-de-Mars Arena.
Adam, 33, tied for the Team USA lead Monday with 14 “tries,” or scores, her top mark in the tournament’s five games.
Team USA’s first Paralympic female wheelchair rugby player, and an assistant professor of occupational science and therapy at St. Louis University, Adam scored 55 tries at the 2024 Paralympic Games.