Morgan Stickney was one of the top 14-year-old mile swimmers in the United States when she started dealing with pain in her foot after months of doctor visits she was diagnosed with a vascular condition she shares with only one other American so rare it does not even have a name Stickney had her left leg amputated below the knee just before her 21st birthday but quickly returned to the pool as a Paris swimer however she started dealing with the same issues in her other leg and then had it amputated the following year Morgan made her par Olympics debut in Tokyo 2 years later winning golds in the 400 met freestyle S8 and the 4x100 medal it was her first ever International meet and her first time leaving the country in the time since Morgan has lost more use of her legs and has spent a third of her days in hospitals in Paris the 27-year-old North Carolina native won another gold in the 400 meter freestyle S7 setting a new paralympic record with a time of 43.8