Imagine you’re just days out of your college graduation, and you’re celebrating in Turks and Caicos. Out of nowhere, a shark comes and bites part of your leg off. For Ali Truwit, this is not fiction — it’s her reality. Yet, she was able to persevere through this hardship and go on to achieve incredible feats.
Ali Truwit, born Alexandra Truwit, is an American Paralympic swimmer and motivational speaker who became a two-time silver medalist at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, just one year after losing her left leg in a shark attack. Her journey from the captain of Yale University’s swim team to a Paralympian, a non-profit founder, and a role model for many has been widely recognized as inspirational and truly incredible.
Born in May 2000 in Darien, Connecticut, Truwit’s love for swimming began at an early age. She spent her childhood swimming in youth meets, and playing in her family’s backyard pool. In high school, she was part of the Chelsea Piers Swim Team. She then attended Yale University, where she was captain of the Yale Bulldogs swimming and diving team, a top distance freestyle competitor, and a four-year letter winner, an award recognizing student-athletes that maintained a varsity-level competitive excellence in their sport for their entire undergraduate career.
Journey of Resilience
Days after graduating from Yale University in May 2023, where she earned a B.S. in Cognitive Science with a depth in Behavioral Economics, Truwit was on a vacation in Turks and Caicos when a shark bit her, leading to a below-knee amputation of her left leg.
Immediately following the shark attack, Truwit and her friend had to swim 50-75 yards back to their boat, where Pilkinton, a medical student at the University of Tennessee, applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, helping to save Truwit’s life. She was then airlifted to Ryder Trauma Center, where she underwent two life-saving surgeries to help fight infections. On May 31st, on her 23rd birthday, her leg was amputated below her knee.
Just six weeks later, Truwit was back in the water, in an effort to get comfortable again and face her fear, where the mere sound of water triggered vivid flashbacks to the attack. During this experience, although physically and emotionally challenging, Truwit still found “glimmers of hope.” She was determined not to let fear take away her love of the water, a place that had always brought her peace. This was the first step in Truwit’s remarkable comeback journey, and in less than four months after her surgery, she started training for the Paralympics.
The Paralympic Games, held for athletes with physical disabilities, including mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and cerebral palsy, has become a major sports event worldwide, with over 4,400 athletes. To even qualify for the Paralympics is hard enough, as it requires world-class skills, rigorous classification for eligible impairments, national team selection trials, and consistent performance. Part of the qualifications to compete for the U.S. at the Paralympics includes competing at multiple events to earn classification statuses, both at a national and international level.
Athletic Achievements
Less than a year after the shark attack, Truwit qualified for Team USA. By winning multiple events at the U.S. Paralympic Swimming Trials in June 2024, Truwit secured her spot in the 2024 Paris Paralympics. In fact, at the qualifying races, Truwit broke an American record in the 100-meter backstroke S10 (athletes with minimal physical impairments) — which she later beat again during a race at the Paralympics — and the 400-meter freestyle (S10). Both of these times were faster than she had ever swum with both legs.
Truwit competed in the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris for women’s swimming. There, she won two Paralympic silver medals in the women’s S10 400-meter freestyle and 100-meter backstroke. Not only did she beat her previous times, before her amputation, but she also set two American records with her win.
Beyond swimming, in November 2025, less than two years after the attack and just a year after her Paralympic success, Truwit ran the New York City Marathon on a prosthetic blade, fulfilling a promise she made to herself immediately after the attack.
Truwit ran her first marathon ever at the 2023 Copenhagen Marathon with her mother, days before her shark attack. In numerous interviews, Truwit recalls lying on her hospital bed and thinking she would never be able to run ever again. She joked to a first responder, “at least I got my marathon in before this,” to which the first responder replied, providing immediate hope, “you’ll run another one.” During the marathon, Truwit ran to raise money and awareness for her nonprofit organization, Stronger Than You Think.
Mental and Emotional Preparation
In an interview with Olympics.com, Truwit talks about her recovery path, stating, “it was like pulling a rabbit out of a hat.” She had to “recover from a shark attack and amputation, learn to use a prosthetic, recover from the trauma, then train fast enough to medal at the Paralympics, all in a year,” said Truwit.
Yet through this fast journey to the Paralympics, Truwit stated, “it massively expedited my recovery and self-acceptance. The Paralympics pulled me out of that space of loss and reminded me of what I still had.”
Truwit’s success and her journey to get there are not solely marked by external achievements, but rather by the inner strength required to confront challenges.
Often, she credits her family and friends for supporting her, and through this support, she was able to navigate the mental and emotional hurdles that came with pursuing her goals. Her story serves as a powerful reminder of how mental and emotional preparation, with the support of loved ones, can empower athletes to reach new heights.
Outside of the Pool
Since then, Truwit has started her non-profit organization, Stronger Than You Think. This non-profit provides opportunities and resources to individuals with limb loss and promotes water safety.
After going through recovery herself, Truwit realized how expensive prosthetics can be and how they tend to not be covered by insurance. Prosthetic costs vary wildly, ranging from a few thousand dollars for basic cosmetic or mechanical limbs up to $50,000 or even $70,000 for advanced, computerized, or high-performance models needed for sports. In her words, the non-profit aims to “support women and girls in need of financial assistance for prosthetics, to provide funding for life-saving water-safety skills, and to support the Paralympic movement.” This is all a reflection of her experience and a way of paying forward all the support she received. Her foundation has provided over 11 prosthetics and nearly $200K in support to those in need, and more than 4,000 hours of lessons to over 700 young people.
Her journey extends further than this, appearing in the 2025 issue of Sports Illustrated. This showcased her versatility and broke barriers in both the sports and modeling industries. Through this, not only was her profile elevated, but her belief in body positivity and the importance of representation for athletes with disabilities was reinforced.
Additionally, Truwit’s presence at high-profile events, such as the Forbes Women Power Summit, an annual, invitation-only event with some of the world’s most influential women, further solidifies her role. At these gatherings, she connects with influential leaders and shares her story of resilience, empowering other women to pursue their passions, regardless of the challenges they face. By attending such influential events, she continues to inspire others and expand her platform, using her voice to advocate for inclusivity and equality both in sports and beyond.
Overall, Truwit has become an influential figure to many, showing how resilience and determination can turn personal adversity into strength. After losing part of her leg in a shark attack, Truwit returned to competitive swimming and reached the highest levels of Parasport, rather than letting the trauma define her limits. Her story inspires people not only because of her athletic success, but also because of her journey to get there and how she demonstrates perseverance, adaptability, and confidence during a life-changing situation. By sharing her journey, Truwit also challenges stereotypes about disabilities and encourages others to believe that their goals are still possible, even when their path looks different than what they once imagined.
Guided by extraordinary resilience and the lifesaving actions of a teammate, Truwit’s journey is an inspiration to many, of all ages and backgrounds. Her journey is simple and powerful: to show that strength is more than ability — it’s purpose, gratitude, and the courage to keep going.
Guided by extraordinary resilience and the lifesaving actions of a teammate, Truwit’s journey is an inspiration to many, of all ages and backgrounds. Her journey is simple and powerful: to show that strength is more than ability — it’s purpose, gratitude, and the courage to keep going.