Amy Purdy facts for kids
Purdy in 2024
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| Birth name | Amy Michelle Purdy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | November 7, 1979 Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
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| Spouse(s) | Daniel Gale (m. 2015) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Amy Michelle Purdy (born November 7, 1979) is an American athlete, actress, and author. She is best known as a para-snowboarder, which means she competes in snowboarding with a physical disability. Amy has won medals at the Paralympic Games. She also helped start an organization called Adaptive Action Sports.
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Life and Career
Amy Purdy was born in Las Vegas in 1979. When she was 19, she became very sick with a serious infection. This illness badly affected her body. Doctors had to remove both of her legs below the knee. She also lost both kidneys and hearing in one ear. Her spleen was removed too. Doctors thought she had only a 2% chance of living. Two years later, her father gave her one of his kidneys in a special operation called a transplant.
Starting Snowboarding
Just seven months after getting her new prosthetic legs, Amy started snowboarding. About a year after her legs were removed, she placed third in a snowboarding contest. This was at Mammoth Mountain. She then received help from a group called the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF). This help allowed her to compete in many snowboarding events across the U.S.
New Opportunities
In 2003, the CAF asked Amy to be their spokesperson. She moved to San Diego to be closer to their main office. In San Diego, Amy continued her work as a massage therapist. She also started working as a model and an actress. In 2003, she appeared in a music video for the singer Madonna. Later that year, Amy began working for a company that makes prosthetic feet. She became their "Amputee Advocate," helping others who use prosthetic limbs.
Adaptive Action Sports
Amy Purdy also helped create her own non-profit group called Adaptive Action Sports. This group is part of Disabled Sports USA. It helps people with physical disabilities get involved in action sports like snowboarding, skateboarding, and surfing. They also support art and music.
Other Achievements
In 2005, Amy acted in her first movie, What's Bugging Seth. In 2014, ESPNW named her one of their Impact 25. This list honors influential women in sports. In 2016, Oprah included Amy in her SuperSoul 100 list. This list features inspiring leaders. Amy stopped competing in sports in March 2022.
Television Appearances
In 2012, Amy Purdy and her husband, Daniel Gale, were on the TV show The Amazing Race. They finished in 10th place out of 11 teams.
On February 5, 2014, Amy was featured in a special TV show on NBC. It was called How to Raise an Olympian. The show shared the stories of seven U.S. Olympic athletes. It included interviews with their families and coaches. Soon after, Amy won a bronze medal in Snowboard Cross at the 2014 Winter Paralympics.
In 2015, Amy was in a Super Bowl advertisement for the Toyota Camry. The ad showed her snowboarding and dancing. It also showed her adjusting her prosthetic legs. The voiceover used words from Muhammad Ali's famous "How Great I Am" speech.
Book
On December 30, 2014, Amy Purdy released her book. It is called On My Own Two Feet: From Losing My Legs To Learning The Dance Of Life. It tells her life story.
Dancing
Amy Purdy was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars in 2014. She was paired with professional dancer Derek Hough. Amy was the first person with two amputated legs to be on the show. She finished as the runner-up.
At the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Paralympics, Amy performed a special dance. Her partner was a KUKA robotic arm. In 2018, Amy returned to Dancing with the Stars for a special trio dance.
See also
In Spanish: Amy Purdy para niños
