Colorado was well-represented in the Tokyo Olympics, and the athletes are delivering some serious results.
TOKYO, Japan — The state of Colorado is more of an Olympic force than many countries.
There are 34 athletes on Team USA that list their hometown as somewhere in Colorado, which is the third largest contingent of any state. Meanwhile, another six athletes either live and train in Colorado most of the year, or went to college here.
There are also some athletes competing for other countries that have ties back to Colorado.
And we’re talking about just the Tokyo Olympics here: in the winter, Colorado is even more dominant.
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Below, you can meet the Colorado athletes who have nabbed Olympic medals (so far).
Congratulations to all of the amazing athletes representing Colorado and the U.S. in Tokyo!
Anastasija Zolotic, taekwondo, gold
Colorado Springs resident Anastasija Zolotic won the United States’ first gold medal in women’s taekwondo. This is the 18-year-old’s first Olympics, and she has been telling people that she has wanted to be a champion since childhood.
She lists her parents as her inspiration, and her favorite food is mashed potatoes.
According to her bio on Team USA’s website, her favorite quote is “failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.”
Will Shaner, shooting, gold
Colorado Springs native Will Shaner took home the gold medal in the 10-meter air rifle.
He’s a graduate of Colorado Springs High School and is studying mechanical engineering at the University of Kentucky. He started competing in shooting sports when he was nine years old at a 4-H program in Rifle.
Before distinguishing himself as an outstanding collegiate shooter, Shaner won the 2016 U.S. National Air Rifle Championship, and has competed in the Junior World Cup, Junior World Championships, World Cup and World Championships.
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Amber English, shooting, gold
Amber English took home the gold medal in the skeet shooting event early in the games. She won the same event in the 2018 World Championships.
She’s a Colorado Springs native and University of Colorado – Colorado Springs alum who is now a first lieutenant with the World Class Athlete Program of the U.S. Army.
Her father and uncle were U.S. Running Target National Team members and Olympic Training Center resident athletes. Her mother and aunt, meanwhile, were part of the collegiate rifle program at the University of Kentucky.
Her bio on the Team USA website says, as you’d expect, this heritage meant that hunting and shooting were recreational activities for the whole family.
English is a lover of the outdoors in general, and said she enjoys hiking, fishing and hunting in the Colorado wilderness in and around the Rocky Mountains.
RELATED: Colorado native Amber English wins skeet gold for US after coming up short twice
Flora Duffy, triathlon, gold
Flora Duffy made her home country of Bermuda the smallest yet to win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics when she won the women’s triathlon event.
Duffy attended the University of Colorado and still spends time in Boulder.
This isn’t her first Olympics: she competed in 2016, 2012 and 2008 games.
RELATED: CU alum earns Bermuda’s first gold with triathlon victory
Lucas Kozeniesky, shooting, silver
Colorado Springs native Lucas Kozeniesky won a silver metal in the 10-meter air rifle mixed team event at the Tokyo Olympics. He also competed in Rio in 2016, and his official bio says a lackluster performance there motivated him to take it to the next level in Tokyo.
He started shooting his freshman year of high school, and competed for North Carolina State in college.
Since graduated, he’s created a shooting consultation business focused on supporting young athletes.
His hobbies are video games, working out, spending time with friends and competitive shooting.
Valarie Allman, discus, gold
The Longmont native who first got into discus to attend a spaghetti dinner (making her possibly the most relatable athlete ever) won the U.S. its first track and field gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics.
She had a final throw of 226 feet and 3 inches, longer than the more than 50 other throws from her competitors on a day with numerous rain delays.
“It’s a second-and-a-half dance that you do hundreds of times, and really repetitive, but gosh darn, I do think it’s a dance,” she told the Associated Press. “It’s poetry. It’s grace. It’s balance. It’s powerful. It’s figuring how to do it as efficiently as you can.”
Adeline Gray, silver, wrestling
Adeline Gray has won five world championships, but has never claimed an Olympic medal. That changed in Tokyo on Monday, when she won a silver after losing in the finals to Germany’s Aline Rotter-Focken.
Gray finished seventh in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, and was out of action for a year due to an injury.
“That’s what I’ve done on this journey the last five years: I’ve still improved, I’ve become a better me,” Gray said in an interview with NBC.
After losing in the final, Gray posted on Instagram that she was not disappointed.
“Wanted #GraytoGold but I’m coming home with #GraytoSilver,” she wrote. “Proud of myself.”
Lindsey Horan, bronze, soccer
Horan and the United States woman’s soccer team won the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics with a 4-3 victory over Australia on Thursday.
It was arguably the best the Americans had looked during the course of a rocky tournament that opened with an uncharacteristic 3-0 loss to Sweden.
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