Swimmer Ali Truwit is overcoming a big fear. She used to feel at home in the water—until she lost her leg to a shark last year. 

Now even the sound of water makes her remember swimming for her life after the shark attack.

Ms. Truwit and a friend snorkeled in the ocean near Turks and Caicos on May 24, 2023. A shark charged. It bit Ms. Truwit’s lower left leg. Thankfully, she is a great swimmer!

She thought: Stay calm. Remain conscious. Just get to the boat. She was bleeding. The shark was circling. She went into competitive swim mode, racing 75 yards toward the safety of the boat. (That’s a little less than the length of three tennis courts put together.)

Rescuers rushed Ms. Truwit to the hospital. Then she was airlifted to the United States. She had three surgeries. Doctors amputated her leg below the knee.

Later, she went to the family’s backyard pool. She waded up to her waist. She fought off fear. The plunge started her path toward healing . . . and toward the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, France.

“I love comeback stories,” says the 24-year-old.

But the comeback wasn’t easy. Ms. Truwit needed strength exercises. She had to learn to use her prosthetic leg. 

She didn’t want to lose her leg and her love of the water. She says, “I don’t let fear rule my life.”

Ms. Truwit started competing again just three-and-a-half months after the attack.

The Paralympics is a big sports competition for athletes with disabilities. This year, it starts on August 28. It ends September 8. Ms. Truwit will compete there. About 50 family members and friends will support her.

The swimmer is thankful to be back in the water. “It’s one of the moments in my swim career that I’m the proudest of,” she says. “Because I know how much work it took.”

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. — Psalm 56:3