Above: Leo Merle wins gold for Team USA at the Parapan American Games in November 2023.
Since being chosen to represent the U.S. at the Paris Paralympics, runner Leo Merle (Rachel Carson ’20, molecular, cell and developmental biology) has had a surreal feeling.
“I’ve had many opportunities to represent the United States in the past four years, but representing the USA for a global celebration of sport and competition has me beaming with excitement,” said Merle, who has cerebral palsy. “It’s an honor to have been selected, and I look to use the most of that selection on the global stage.”
Kobe 2024 Para Athletics World Championships at Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium, Japan. (Photo by Marco Mantovani / Gate3 Photo Agency)
Merle will compete with Team USA at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. With a gold medal win for Team USA at the 2023 Parapan American Games, and a fourth-place finish at the 2024 World Championships, Merle is ready to represent the country in Paris.
Merle will be competing in the T38 classification for mid-distance track. For fairness in para-sport, athletes are placed in classifications of similar ability to ensure a level playing field and strong competition. These classifications include wheelchair users; short stature; amputees; and visual, mental, and physical impairment. Merle’s level of cerebral palsy places him in a classification of high-functioning individuals with traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and/or cerebral palsy (CP).
Leo Merle graduates with a doctorate in dental surgery at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.
While attending UC Santa Cruz, Merle competed in his first competition as a para-athlete in the 2019 Under 23 U.S. Nationals. He set the Under 23 U.S. record for the 5K among T38 athletes at that event. He is one of over 100 University of California alumni competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics.
Merle’s goal heading into the Paralympics is to be the first American with cerebral palsy to run the 1,500-meter race in less than four minutes. If he accomplishes this goal, Merle will set another national record and become the second individual with cerebral palsy in the world to do so.
“At this time I am still looking to be the first American with CP to break four minutes,” Merle said. “After racing at trials this past weekend, I realized how close and attainable this goal is.”
The Paralympic games will take place in Paris August 28–September 8, and come just three months after Merle completed his doctorate in dental surgery at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. Following the Paralympics, Merle plans to work as a general dentist until he completes an endodontics program and becomes a root canal specialist.
Watch Merle compete at the 2024 Paris Paralympics on September 6 and 7.