“Monster” Mike Schultz doesn’t need more medals. He’s got plenty. Truly. But he trains hard to win more, nonetheless.
Last week, Schultz added two more: a pair of silver medals from the Paralympics World Cup in Passo San Pellegrino, Italy. He earned silver in the men’s LL1 Snowboardcross on March 1, and another silver in the men’s LL1 Dual Banked Slalom (finishing a mere 0.08 seconds behind Team U.S.A. teammate Noah Elliott. The frosting on the cake, so to speak, is that he left Europe as the Banked Slalom World Cup Champion for the 2022-23 season, bringing the coveted globe back to the United States.
All of this is quite the achievement, of course. But it gets better. Schultz and his company BioDapt provided all of the athletes in the Men’s LL-1 Boardercross and Banked Slalom with prosthetic equipment that he himself designed. Teammate, friend, or competitor, they all were able to race better with the BioDapt prosthetics. Schultz works constantly to further improve the prosthetic equipment as well.
In mid-January, the U.S. Paralympics Snowboarding team participated in the first 2023 world cup competition at Pyhatunturi (Pyha), Finland. Schultz earned a bronze on the first day, Jan. 13, in LL1 Snowboardcross, and another bronze Jan. 14.
Earlier this season, at the Big White World Cup in Canada, Schultz earned gold in LL1 Banked Slalom both days, Dec. 19 and Dec. 20.
The 2022-23 Para Snowboard World Cup season kicked off in late November in Landgraaf, Netherlands. Schultz picked up two more bronze medals for LL1 Banked Slalom on Nov. 24-25.
Schultz was named to the U.S. Paralympics Snowboarding team last July. He is working his way to his biggest competition: his third Paralympics, the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina, Italy.
He’s had a parade and “Monster” Mike Schultz Day proclaimed in Kimball, along with a road sign to prove it at two of the entrances to town. He has won gold medals at both the summer and winter X Games, in multiple sports both motorized and not. He represented Team U.S.A. at two Paralympics (PyeongChang and Beijing), and his teammates dubbed him “Captain America” in Korea, and voted him flag-bearer for Team U.S.A. in the opening ceremonies. Not one to rest on his laurels, the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Italy are firmly in his sights now.