U.S. Paralympic snowboarder Evan Strong earned March Athlete of the Month recognition from the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) for his performance during the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.
Strong, who sustained an amputation of his left leg below the knee after he was struck by a drunk driver while riding his motorcycle, captured the gold medal and led a U.S. podium sweep in the Paralympic debut of men’s snowboard cross at the Paralympics. Strong turned in a winning time of 51.62 in the final run to earn the top podium spot by less than half of a second.
He is also on the shortlist for the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Best Male Athlete of March.
U.S. Olympic track cyclist Sarah Hammer was honored at the top female Athlete of the Month, and the 2014 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team received Team of the Month honors.
According to a USOC press release, each National Governing Body may nominate one female, one male, and one team per discipline. A voting panel selects the winners from the pool of nominees with online fan voting via Twitter accounting for 10 percent of the total vote.
