Scott Winkler is a U.S. shot put paralympian who trains, competes and inspires others.

Shot put wasn’t Scott’s first sport, however. Growing up, he was a sprinter and long jumper for his high school track and field team. After high school, Scott joined the United States Army. While deployed in Tikrit, Iraq, in 2003 he fell from an ammunition truck, suffering injuries that resulted in paralysis.

“When I was injured and got back, it wasn’t easy for me,” says Scott. “I didn’t know what I was going to be. I was a soldier. When that was taken from me, I had to figure out, who am I?”

Paralyzed below the chest, and stripped of the identity he had known, he began to question his self worth.

“I felt like zero. Nothing.”