When Kate Delson was about one year old, her parents discovered she’d been born with a disability affecting the muscles in her right leg. Coming from a family of skiers, Delson’s mom was worried her daughter would be limited in what she could do.
But when a work conference brought her to Park City, she discovered the National Ability Center.
“She walked in, and she told them about me, and they explained how, yeah, we can get your daughter on skis or snowsliding, however that looks like,” Delson said. “It was that that really showed her that I could ski and ride.”
So when Delson was three years old, her parents had her sliding down the mountain on skis through an adaptive sports organization in Mammoth Lakes, California. Later, she strapped into a snowboard and started to find her stride. By age 7, Delson was obsessed.
“I was very drawn to the park,” she said. “I would be scared, but I'd be hiking boxes. I'd be hitting them, I'd be falling. I'd be hitting little jumps. I was not that good at all, but I would just have so much fun.”
She very much wanted to be like other snowboarders in the Mammoth park and on TV, but never had Paralympic dreams. That changed after she competed for the first time at 18 years old.
Two years later, Delson became the youngest member on Team USA when she was named to the roster in May 2025. This unlocked a world of opportunities and resources she hadn’t had before.
“I was the only one this whole season who hadn't gone to a Paralympic Games yet,” Delson said. “It was really cool being surrounded by all my older teammates, who are also mentors.”
Delson trained alongside para-snowboard legends Mike Schultz and Keith Gabel. Both are retiring from competition this year, and Delson said it was great to hear about their pioneering journeys. Schultz designed the prosthetic leg used by nearly every competitive winter sports amputee, and Gabel competed in the first para-snowboard World Cup.
Delson said going from training with able-bodied athletes to para-athletes was a welcome change.
“We all are constantly learning from each other, and it creates a special environment where you can't say in your head, ‘This won't work for me,’ it's like anything goes when you're training with teammates who also have unique disabilities,” she said.
With just one year on Team USA under her belt, Delson has topped the podium seven times. The 20-year-old took home gold in banked slalom and silver in snowboard cross at the 2026 Milan Cortina Paralympics, beating out veteran riders.
“I'll never forget that feeling of knowing like, ‘Hey, I just got a Paralympic medal,’ because it's a pretty big deal to a lot of people, especially my family and my coaches, and that's just what made the moment so special,” she said.
Delson was especially proud of her banked slalom gold. She earned her first win in the event just a few months earlier.
“That one was pretty unreal to cross the finish line and have all my teammates and competitors there to not only tell me that I just won, but also to cheer me on for it,” she said. “I beat my own time, and no matter what, with that run that I put down, I would have been proud.”
Delson's success and consistency throughout the season also earned her a coveted crystal globe. The trophy is one of the highest honors the Ski and Snowboard Federation can bestow. It recognizes the top-performing athletes in each discipline over a full World Cup season.
Though the 2025-2026 season is done, Delson said she’s only getting started. She’s already looking forward to summer training and plans to start competing in slopestyle.
Delson’s start in sport has also come full circle. Her mother’s discovery of the National Ability Center has since led Delson to move to Park City and train full-time. She said the community already feels like home.
She’s also looking forward to competing in Utah’s 2034 Paralympics.
“To be able to share beautiful Utah and Park City with my competitors and so many new competitors I probably haven't met yet that will be on the circuit, will be so special,” she said
Between now and then, she hopes to grow para-sports so other young people with disabilities can see what’s possible.
