Ultra-marathoner and leg amputee Amy Palmiero-Winters won the Amateur Athletic Union’s Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. What makes her honor all the more extraordinary is that she competes against able-bodied marathon runners. It was the first time since 1996 that a U.S. Track and Field athlete had won the award. She was recognized at an awards ceremony on April 14, 2010, for her athletic achievements, contributions to society, and “embodiment of the ideals of amateurism.”

Winning the Sullivan Award, Amy tells Disaboom, “was a great honor for the ultra-running community.”

Amy had her left leg amputated below the knee three years after her leg was crushed in a 1994 motorcycle accident. She wears a custom-made running prosthesis.   

Leg Amputee Employed at Prosthetics Company
The 37-year-old single mother works as youth fitness director for A Step Ahead Prosthetics.

This position, says Amy, “is very rewarding to help children reach their goals. The different experiences and events we do help them build a sense of confidence that will help them throughout life. Participating in sports activities let’s them discover who they are, and not just concentrate on the loss of their leg.”

Amy works with children who are recovering from amputations, coordinating 15 sports programs each year for young amputees.

“It is wonderful to help them,” says Amy, “to build strong foundations through sports that will help them build up confidence and friendships. I get great satisfaction from working with them.” 

Amputee Team Races Worldwide
Amy is a member of Team A Step Ahead, organized by the company and made up of amputee athletes from around the world who compete in events including the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon, multiple marathons, road races all over the globe, and the Paralympic Games.

In addition, Amy is a coach, motivational speaker, rock climber, and skier. She was a welder prior to becoming youth fitness director for A Step Ahead Prosthetics.

Amputee Gives Back
She runs six marathons annually while pushing disabled people in their wheelchairs. This helps them with the experience of racing in their first marathon, says Amy, “and set up goals for their future.” They race in manual wheelchairs, and Amy gives them race wheelchairs as gifts so they can continue in the sport.

Amy is a single-leg below-the-knee amputee world record holder in over a dozen events. Her accomplishments include:
•    The first amputee named to a U.S. national team in the ultra-runners world championship in May 2010.
•    World record holder in ultra-marathons for amputee women at several distances
•    Winner of the Arizona Road Racers 24-hours Run to the Future, beating all able-bodied entrants; and the Ossur National Leg Amputee Half-Marathon

Amy says that she wouldn’t want her leg back “because not all of us get a second chance in life, and I did. And my life and the experiences I have had because of it have made me a better person, mother, coach, mentor and employee. We take too much in life for granted.”

Photo shows Amy racing on Long Island, along the green belt trail of Staten Island, New York.