BEIJING, China — Rico Roman of Portland is representing the United States at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing.
Roman and his U.S. sled hockey teammates defeated Canada 5-0 in the preliminary round Friday night. The U.S. went on to outshoot South Korea 39-3 on Saturday, securing them a spot in the semifinals.
The 37-year-old is a two-time Paralympian who earned a gold medal at the Paralympic Games in Sochi in 2014 and again in 2018 in PyeongChang. He also won gold with the U.S. at the 2021 World Para Ice Hockey Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Roman, a father of two, did not grow up playing sled hockey. He was introduced to the sport by Operation Comfort, which is an organization that helps injured U.S. service personnel.
He served in the U.S. Army for nine years and is a retired Army Staff Sergeant. Roman had to get his left leg amputated above the knee after being injured by an improvised explosive device in Iraq in 2017.
Roman shared a photo on his Instagram account and wrote, "Picture day. So honored to wear the USA on my chest with my teammates."
The Paralympic Winter Games run from March 4-13.
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