How a Marine Sniper's Mindset Carried Josh Sweeney to Paralympic Gold, Now At His Third Games
There is a voice in Josh Sweeney's head that shows up at the worst possible moment — when he's exhausted, when his lungs are burning, when he needs to go completely still and shoot a target.
"I have to constantly fight that negative voice that's saying you can't do this, you can't do that. You can't afford these mistakes." - Josh Sweeney
Sweeney has been fighting that voice his entire life. And his entire life, he has won.
His Road to Biathlon
Sweeney served as a Scout Sniper in the United States Marine Corps until an explosive device caused a double amputation above the knees and required multiple surgeries on both arms and hands. Less than two years later, he was selected to the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. In 2014, at the Sochi Paralympics, he helped Team USA win gold.
The secret, he'll tell you, was never talent. It was process.
"I love the process," Sweeney says. "I've totally fallen in love with it. It started even before sled hockey in the military. I was a Scout Sniper in the Marine Corps so it was similar. Process-oriented."
That same philosophy drove him to make a bold transition ahead of the Beijing 2022 Paralympics: leaving sled hockey behind to take up cross-country skiing, a sport he had barely touched. He made the team, and a new ambition began to take shape.
As a former sniper, Sweeney had always been drawn to biathlon, a sport that combines skiing at maximum effort with the demand to slow everything down and shoot with surgical precision. It was almost written for him. But for years, one thing held him back.
"I never felt like I was a fast enough skier," he says simply.
In Beijing, he competed only in cross-country events. Now, at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games (his third Winter Paralympics overall, his second as a Nordic skier) he's ready.
Tomorrow, Sweeney competes in the Men's Sprint Pursuit Sitting Para Biathlon final. On Sunday, he lines up for the Men's 20km Interval Start Sitting. And he believes a medal is within reach.
The Mind Behind the Rifle
Biathlon is a sport of brutal contradictions. Athletes push their bodies to the absolute limit on the course, then must immediately locate a stillness at the shooting range where the margin for error is measured in millimeters.
For Sweeney, the mental demand is familiar territory.
"My best results come from the races where I am process-oriented, where I am focused on what is happening at that exact point in time. I remind myself: if I focus on the fundamentals, if I can do all the little things correctly, I will put together a great race and have the potential to achieve what I set out to do." - Josh Sweeney
That means silencing the voice, staying present, and trusting the work.
"I have to focus on the things I can control.” - Josh Sweeney
It Takes A Village
Sweeney is quick to acknowledge his support system. When he first entered Paralympic sport, it was the veterans ahead of him who showed him the way. That culture of mentorship has followed him across every discipline he's entered.
"When I came into the sport, there was a lot of mentorship from the guys who had been on the team before me. That started in sled hockey, transitioned into cross-country skiing, and now into biathlon …where I'm learning from my teammates and even my competitors. If we can all make each other better, it's going to be an absolute blast to compete in this sport." - Josh Sweeney
It speaks to something Sweeney has understood since his military days: the strongest performers rarely do it alone.
Four Chapters. One Constant.
By his own count, Sweeney has restarted his athletic career on numerous occasions. Sled hockey. Cross-country skiing. Biathlon. Each time, he has walked into a new discipline as a beginner: unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and uncertain.
Each time, he shows up anyway.
"Every single time, I felt like a total newbie. Out of place. Uncomfortable. But I just told myself: hey, just do it. Go out and do it. See if you like it. Have fun. Figure it out. It'll be great." - Josh Sweeney
His advice to other athletes is the same encouragement he gives himself: "Just get out there. You'll figure it out. Have fun — and don't worry about what you can't do. Focus on what you can do."
Tomorrow, on the biathlon course at Milano-Cortina, Josh Sweeney will do exactly that.
ABOUT THIS SERIES
I'm Amy Wotovich, and I am on a mission to interview 100% of Team USA's 2026 Olympic and Paralympic athletes to create the most comprehensive mindset record of a single Games cycle. What do elite competitors actually believe about pressure, identity, failure, and joy? Josh Sweeney is one of hundreds of athletes sharing their unfiltered answers. Follow the journey!