Paralympian Evan Medell planned to win gold and retire after the Tokyo Paralympics, but the taekwondo competition brought an unforeseen challenge — a fractured foot.

The injury happened when he kicked the elbow of Croatia’s Ivan Mikulic during the semifinal match. He then battled his way from the loss, competing in pain with a swollen foot until earning the bronze medal.

“[I] just mentally put that pain in a little box and just powered through to the last match and felt really good when I won,” Medell said.

In Paris, Medell will again be fighting for the top of the podium. He is looking to upgrade his hard-faught bronze, this time as the only American man in para taekwondo and the new Paralympic 80+kg weight class.

“Winning the gold, to me, would mean just having something I could carry the rest of my life,” Medell said. “Like, I put in the work, and I reached my maximum ability, which is winning gold.”

Medell, 27, grew up in Michigan with brachial plexus palsy, an immobility that affects arms. He started para taekwondo in 2008 and first competed internationally in 2015 in the 75+kg weight class.

Since then, he’s garnered several championship medals, qualifying for Paris by winning gold in the 80+kg at the 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile.

“That's why I work as hard as I do: I don't play for silver,” Medell said, “I'm going for gold.” 

He’s been preparing for Paris by lifting weights, doing mobility work, afternoon cardio sessions, and two hours of taekwondo in the evening — specifically sparring and drills. He also works as a welder like his father, but when he clocks out he gets mentally ready to start training, he said.

“I view it as part of taekwondo in a weird way,” Medell said. “I get there, and I go to work, I'm like, ‘I need to finish this, I need to put in a good shift to be able to do the things that I really am passionate about, that I really wanna do.’”

At the Paralympics, he will be “the small fast guy,” in the 80+kg category but he plans to use his speed and strategy to his advantage. He will face larger opponents like Great Britain's Matt Bush, who he lost to in the 2023 World final, and Mikulic, whom he lost to in the semifinal in Tokyo.

Medell will again be fighting for his ultimate plan: win gold and retire.

“If I win in Paris,” he said, “I've accomplished everything I needed to accomplish in para taekwondo.”