Breaking a world record is a huge accomplishment for any athlete, but 16-year-old Kayla Wheeler has managed to do it with no legs and only one arm.
The high school student from Washington was born with three congenital amputations, according to KCPQ. She took to swimming at a young age as a form of physical therapy. Today, she's a Paralympic swimming champion -- and currently holds the world record in the 50 meter butterfly.
"It's kind of indescribable," her mother, Joyce Wheeler, told KCPQ. "When they announce her name and she's representing the United States I get goose bumps all over. I'm so amazed that's my child."
Wheeler competes in the S1 category, which indicates the highest level of impairment, and has hopes of swimming in the 2016 games.
According to the news source, Wheeler is currently preparing for her next big meet -- the International Paralympic World Championships -- which will take place in Montreal this August.
Wheeler's story is much like that of Aria Ottmueller, a blind high school pole vaulter from Arizona who will soon compete at the state level.
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