“Monster Mike” Schultz Wins Bronze In His Final Paralympic Race
· Yahoo Sports
(I interviewed Mike Schultz on March 13th, 2026. His quotes are taken from the transcript of that interview.)
The start gate snapped open at the top of the hill on Friday, the 13th of March in Cortina d’ Ampezzo, Italy.
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CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, ITALY - MARCH 13: Mike Schultz of United States competes during the Para Snowboard Men's Banked Slalom on day seven of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games at Cortina Para Snowboard Park on March 13, 2026 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. (Photo by Marcus Hartmann/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesBelow, the banked slalom course twisted down the mountain in a series of icy berms and steep transitions. At the top stood Mike Schultz, 44 years old, preparing for what he knew could be the final competitive run of his life. Nearly two decades earlier, a devastating snowmobile crash had cost Schultz his left leg above the knee. Now he was back on the world stage, racing athletes half his age at the 2026 Winter Paralympics. When the starter’s signal came, Schultz dropped into the course with the fearless style that earned him the nickname “Monster Mike.”
Seconds later, he crossed the finish line and looked up at the scoreboard. His name flashed into second place. “I knew I was locked in for a podium spot,” Schultz said afterward. “I just let out the biggest yell of happiness—like I accomplished something big today in my career.”
By the end of the event, Japan’s Daichi Oguri had edged ahead of Schultz, leaving him with a bronze medal. But the moment still felt perfect. “It was a storybook day,” Schultz said. “To put that exclamation point on the end of my career is pretty incredible.”
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, ITALY - MARCH 13: Gold medallist Noah Elliott of Team United States, Silver medallist Daichi Oguri of Team Japan and Bronze medallist Mike Schultz of Team United States observe the United States national anthem on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Para Snowboard Men's Banked Slalom SB-LL1 on day seven of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games at Cortina Para Snowboard Park on March 13, 2026 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesOne Last Run
Banked slalom is one of para-snowboarding’s most technically demanding events. Riders charge down a steep course lined with snow berms and rapid transitions. Each athlete gets two runs, with the fastest time determining the result. After his first run, Schultz sat in third place. That meant he would start near the end of the second round while watching competitors attempt to knock him off the podium. His team asked whether he wanted to know how the standings were changing.
“I told them no,” Schultz said. “I’m going to throw down as hard as I can anyway.” His second run was vintage Monster Mike. “I was hanging on the ragged edge that whole run,” he said. For a brief moment, he moved into second place before Oguri’s run pushed him to bronze. The medal marked the final Paralympic race of a highly decorated, multi-sport career.
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, ITALY - MARCH 13: Bronze medallist Mike Schultz of Team United States and Gold medallist Noah Elliott of Team United States celebrate after competing in the Para Snowboard Men's Banked Slalom SB-LL1 Second Run on day seven of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games at Cortina Para Snowboard Park on March 13, 2026 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesRacing Against Time
At 44, Schultz was among the oldest competitors in the field. Many of the athletes he raced against were nearly half his age. Longevity, however, has defined Schultz’s career from the beginning. His nickname dates back to his early years racing snowmobiles and motocross. During one race, he nearly crashed but somehow saved the machine while sliding sideways at full throttle. The announcer shouted: “Monster Mike saves it!”
The name stuck.
That fearless style propelled Schultz to the top ranks of motorsports—but it also led to the accident that changed his life.
The Crash That Changed Everything
In 2008, Schultz was competing in professional snocross when a crash shattered his knee beyond repair. Doctors ultimately amputated his left leg above the knee. For many athletes, such an injury would mark the end of competition.
For Schultz, it sparked an entirely new mission.
Determined to race again, he discovered that conventional prosthetic limbs could not withstand the impact of action sports. So he built one himself. “I’ve always loved competition,” Schultz said previously about his recovery. “I’m very goal-oriented.”³ Working in a small workshop, Schultz engineered a mechanical knee capable of absorbing jumps, shocks and high-speed turns. The innovation would soon reshape adaptive sports.
Building Technology That Changed Paralympic Sport
In 2010 Schultz founded BioDapt, a Minnesota-based company focused on high-performance prosthetic limbs for extreme sports. Its signature products—the Moto Knee and Versa Foot—quickly became breakthrough technologies in adaptive athletics. Today, prosthetics designed by Schultz are used by the majority of elite para-snowboard athletes worldwide. The equipment has also enabled injured athletes and wounded veterans to return to activities once considered impossible.
Yet one of the most remarkable aspects of Schultz’s work is this: Many of the athletes benefiting from his technology are also his fiercest rivals.
The Rival He Helped Beat Him
One of Schultz’s longest rivalries is with Dutch snowboarder Chris Vos. The two have battled on podiums for more than a decade. At one point Schultz approached Vos with an idea: he could design a brace that would dramatically improve the Dutch rider’s range of motion. The result helped Vos become faster—sometimes fast enough to beat Schultz himself.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - MARCH 12: Mike Schultz of USA (30) celebrates after winning the Gold medal with Silver medallist Chris Vos of Netherlands (L) and Bronze medallist Noah Elliott of USA in the Men's Snowboard Cross SB-LL1 during day three of the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Games on March 12, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images,)
Getty Images,“It’s kind of a double-edged sword,” Schultz said with a laugh. “He’s my competitor and I just made him noticeably faster.”
But Schultz believes the bigger mission matters more. “It’s about progressing the sport as a whole,” he said. At the finish line in Cortina, that philosophy was visible as athletes congratulated Schultz after his final race. “The whole podium had BioDapt equipment,” he said. “I got a whole lot of hugs and high fives.”
Reinventing Himself As A Paralympian
Remarkably, Schultz did not even begin competitive snowboarding until after losing his leg. His background in motocross and snowmobile racing translated naturally to snowboard cross and banked slalom.
He debuted at the 2018 Winter Paralympics, capturing gold in snowboard cross and silver in banked slalom. Another silver medal followed at the 2022 Winter Paralympics. By the time he arrived in Italy for the 2026 Games, Schultz had already secured his legacy as both an athlete and an innovator. The bronze medal simply brought the story full circle.
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA - MARCH 07: Mike Schultz of Team United States competes in the Men's Snowboard Cross SB-LL1 Quarterfinals at Genting Snow Park during day three of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics on March 07, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesWhat Comes Next
Schultz insists the 2026 Paralympics mark the end of his competitive career. “My back says so,” he joked. But retirement from racing will hardly slow him down. Back home in Minnesota, orders for BioDapt prosthetics are waiting. Schultz is also collaborating with engineering design firm Autodesk to further refine next-generation prosthetic technology. For now, however, he is looking forward to something simpler: time with family after years spent traveling the world chasing podiums.
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA - MARCH 07: Silver medalist Mike Schultz of Team USA celebrates on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Men's Snowboard Cross SB-LL1 Big Finalduring day three of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics on March 07, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
Getty Images“This summer I’m really going to relax,” Schultz said.
For most athletes, a bronze medal might simply mark the end of a career. For Mike Schultz, it symbolizes something far larger. The same athlete who once rebuilt his own prosthetic knee in a garage has now helped engineer the equipment used by much of the Paralympic snowboarding field. His innovations have expanded what injured athletes can do—not only on the slopes but across dozens of action sports.
Schultz may be stepping away from the start gate, but the technology he created—and the athletes it empowers—will likely keep racing downhill for many years to come.