Jonathan Lujan

Jonathan Lujan grew up shredding the slopes in Littleton, Colorado and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps after high school, serving honorably from 1993 to 1997. However, after the September 11 attacks he re-enlisted in the Marine Corps and deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. During his first deployment he suffered a back injury that left him with paralysis in his lower legs. As a result he was medically discharged from the Marine Corps in 2006. Two years later he attended the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic and was introduced to ski racing. He spent the next three years mastering the sport and then took his talents to the professional level and captured the United States National Championship in Downhill and Super Giant Slalom in 2012. That same year he won a bronze medal in the Giant Slalom Standing competition and went on to capture a silver medal in the Super Giant Slalom Standing at the 2013 National Championships. In 2014 he was a member of the Winter Paralympics US alpine skiing team. Lujan is a Paralympian, a Marine, and a true American hero.