COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. –– Naval Academy graduate Brad Snyder ('06) was named to the United States paratriathlon team that will compete in the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, later this summer.  USA Triathlon announced the 17-athlete squad earlier today.

Paratriathlon made its debut as a medal event at the Paralympic Games Rio 2016.  At the Paralympic Games Tokyo, triathletes will cover a 750-meter swim, non-drafting 20-kilometer bike and 5-kilometer run.  All races will be held at Tokyo's Odaiba Marine Park, the same venue as the Olympic triathlon competitions.  The Paralympic triathlon events will take place Friday, Aug. 27, and Saturday, Aug. 28, at 5:30 p.m. ET in the U.S. (Saturday, Aug. 28, and Sunday, Aug. 29 at 6:30 a.m. in Tokyo).  

Snyder, a native of St. Petersburg, Fla., who served as the captain of the Navy men's swimming team as a senior and now resides in Baltimore, will be guided by Greg Billington, who was a member of Team USA in the triathlon at the 2016 Olympics.  Snyder lost his eyesight in a 2011 IED explosion while serving in Afghanistan.  One year to the date of losing his vision, he won a gold medal in swimming at the Paralympic Games London 2012.  Now a five-time gold medalist and two-time silver medalist in swimming from the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Games, he made the switch to paratriathlon in 2018 and earned his first elite victory at the 2021 Americas Triathlon Para Championships Pleasant Prairie.