Sarah Reinertsen became the first female amputee to finish the Ironman triathlon. She lost her leg at the age of 7 after a birth condition that caused it to stop growing. She was fitted with a prosthetic leg but never quite fit in with regular school activities. She was always picked last for sporting events and sometimes was not allowed to participate.

Things began to change for Sarah when she was 11 years old and went to her first track meet for kids with disabilities. This was the first time that Sarah competed with girls like her. She ran hard and finished first. For the first time in her life, she won. The discovery that she could be an athlete was the defining moment of her life. Her world suddenly opened up to an area that she never thought would be a possibility for her.

Sarah later took up biking and swimming. She swims without her prosthetic leg and uses a specially designed prosthetic for biking and running. She set several records for sprints and long distance races as a teen. But the event she wanted the most was the "Iron man" competition. The Ford Ironman World Championships requires each participant to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and finish with a 26-mile marathon.

"I did the Ironman Hawaii in 2004, but missed the bike cut-off by 15 minutes. I trained my heart out in 2005 to complete my 'unfinished business' in Kona," said Sarah.

Like every other challenge that Sarah faces, she did it. On October 15, 2005 she became the first female amputee to complete the Ironman competition in 15 hours, 5 minutes.

Since 1991, Sarah has recorded a number of athletic accomplishments:

• Setting world records in the 100m, 200m, 400m in her division (T42);

• Becoming the youngest member of the 1992 U.S. Paralympic Team to go to Barcelona;

• Conquering seven marathons (NYC 1997, 1998; LA 1998, 1999; Millenium New Zealand 2000; London 2002; and Boston 2004);

• Holding the world record in the half marathon (2:12) and the marathon (5:27) for above-knee amputee women.