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Local athlete overcomes the odds

Posted at 5:23 AM, Jan 07, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-07 08:41:37-05

With the new year often comes new goals, but we all know it can be challenging to stay on track.

News 5 spoke to one local athlete about overcoming all the odds and achieving the impossible.

Allysa Seely truly has a remarkable story! She’s a Paralympian training at the Olympic Training Center with over a dozen World Cup Medals to her name, but those wins weren’t easy!

Allysa’s journey began about 10 years ago with a New Years goal.

“Instead of doing a New Year’s resolution every year, I try to do something I’ve never done before,” explained Allysa. “I decided on doing a triathlon.”

She fell in love with the challenge, but weeks after conquering her first triathlon Allysa encountered a new obstacle.

“I was losing feelings in my arms and legs,” said Allysa. “I was exhausted all the time.”

After almost two years of testing, Allysa was diagnosed with a rare combination of neurological conditions.

“I was told there was a chance I’d never walk again,” Allysa continued. “But I was determined to be an athlete again, so I went back to doing the only thing I knew how to do.”

It didn’t happen overnight.

“Just setting a goal every day and trying to achieve it,” explained Allysa. “From learning to walk again, to swim, to run, then to bike.”

Allysa said she started small, but aimed big!

“8 months after I was told I would never walk again, I was the first athlete with a physical disability to cross the finish line at Collegiate National Championships,” Allysa continued.

Now Allysa is a gold medalist Paralympian and 3 time World Champion Triathlete training up to 25 hours a week with her service dog Mowgli.

Plus, she already has her sights set on her next goal!

“To defend my gold medal from Rio in Tokyo in 2020,” says Allysa!