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A Fire in His Eyes

U.S. Paralympic Athlete and retired U.S. Navy EOD Officer Brad Snyder celebrates after winning gold in the 400-meter freestyle at the Paralympics in London on Friday. The Navy lieutenant won the event exactly one year after losing his sight in an explosion in Afghanistan.
Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Bradley Snyder celebrates after winning gold in the 400-meter freestyle at the Paralympics in London on Friday. The Navy lieutenant won the event exactly one year after losing his sight in an explosion in Afghanistan.

Growing up in Florida, Brad Snyder spent most of his childhood in a pool or at the beach. At the Naval Academy, he was captain of the swim team. In 2011 while serving in Afghanistan, Snyder lost his vision after a 40-pound improvised explosive device exploded in his face.

Remarkably, a year later, Snyder was back in the pool, this time at the Paralympics in London where he won two gold medals and one silver in swimming. In 2020 at the Tokyo Paralympics, Snyder again scored gold, this time in the triathlon.

Outside of his athletic career, Snyder is a PhD candidate at Princeton and the author of the memoir Fire in My Eyes.

The Bounce is produced by Jill Yesko and distributed by Your Public Studios.

Filmmaker and journalist Jill Yesko is a former cyclist who represented the United States in the 1983 World University Games and competed in the Olympic Trials. Jill’s films include Tainted Blood: The Untold Story of the 1984 Olympic Blood Doping Scandal, Broken Trust: Athlete Abuse Exposed and the forthcoming Uphill Climb: The Women Who Conquered the Tour de France.