Jon

Lujan

Sport: Alpine Skiing
Height: 5-10
Weight: 195
Classification: LW3, Standing
Date of Birth: Feb. 21, 1971
Birthplace: Denver, Colo.
Hometown: Littleton, Colo.
Current Residence: Littleton, Colo.
High School: Chatfield Senior HS (Littleton, Colo.) '89
College: Arapahoe Community College
Coach: Kevin Jardine
Military Service Branch: United States Marine Corps
Military Rank: Sergeant
Military Status: Retired

Career Highlights

• 2014: Paralympic Winter Games competitor, super-G, giant slalom and slalom; World Cup Copper Mountain, 18th giant slalom run 1, 23rd giant slalom run 2; World Cup Panorama, 24th super-G; NorAm Winter Park, 4th slalom, 5th giant slalom run 1 and 2; U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National Championships, 1st downhill
• 2013: IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships, 11th slalom; World Cup Thredbo, 3rd giant slalom, 4th slalom; U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National Championships, 1st super-G
• 2012: U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National Championships, 1st downhill and super-G; Named to 2012-13 U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National B Team

Personal

Before getting involved in the Paralympic Movement, Jonathan Lujan served in the Marine Corps for more than eight and a half years, initially from 1993-97 and again after the September 11, 2001, attacks from 2001-2006. During a mission in Iraq in 2003, Lujan ruptured two discs in his back. The surgery to repair the discs in 2005 damaged Lujan’s spinal cord, causing temporary loss of feeling and movement below his waist. Though he is able to walk, he has permanent nerve damage and paralysis in his lower legs that restrict his movement and have left him with no feeling below his knees.

Lujan turned to ski racing in 2008 when fellow wounded veteran Nick Orchowiski recommended the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic (NDVWSC) based in Snowmass Village, Colo. Lujan progressed quickly, joining the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club in the spring of 2011 as part of the U.S. Paralympic Developmental Program. By July 2012, he had made the U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National B Team roster.

Lujan served as the flag bearer for Team USA at the Opening Ceremony of the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games. He also serves as a role model for future Paralympians, children with disabilities, and injured servicemen and women as a Paralympic Ambassador. In addition, he remains a mentor for veterans currently training at the NDVWSC.

Lujan is a Littleton, Colo., native and a graduate of Chatfield Senior High School, where he was on the football, wrestling and track teams. Though he did not ski competitively until after his injury, Lujan has been an avid skier since childhood and has spent many of his winters on the mountain in Winter Park, Colo.

Connect
Twitter: @JonnyVolcano44
Facebook: Facebook.com/JonnyVolcano44