Cassie Mitchell (born June 8, 1981) is an associate professor at

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public university, public research university and Institute of technology (United States), institute of technology in Atlanta, ...

, American engineer, and

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Kore ...

cyclist and track and field athlete.

Early life

Mitchell was born in

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the 13th-largest city in Oklahoma and is the county seat of Muskogee County, Oklahoma, Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of ...

, and graduated from high school in Warner in 1999 as

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

of her class; shortly thereafter, she developed

neuromyelitis optica Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) are a spectrum of autoimmune diseases characterized by acute inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis, ON) and the spinal cord ( myelitis).Banerjee S, Butcher R. Rituximab for the Treatment o ...

, which left her paralyzed from the chest down with limited movement of her arms and hands and with permanent

double vision Diplopia is the simultaneous perception of two images of a single object that may be displaced in relation to each other. Also called double vision, it is a loss of visual focus under regular conditions, and is often voluntary. However, when occ ...

. In 2004, she graduated from

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

with a BS degree in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of the operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials ...

. She later earned a PhD in

biomedical engineering Biomedical engineering (BME) or medical engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology for healthcare applications (e.g., diagnostic or therapeutic purposes). BME also integrates the logica ...

from both Emory and

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

universities.

Academic career

Currently, she is an associate professor at Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. She is also the principal investigator for the Laboratory for Pathology Dynamics.

Paralympic career

Mitchell has competed in 4 Paralympics (2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024). Mitchell won a silver medal at the 2011 IPC World Championships and the same year won five gold medals at the UCI World Para-cycling Championships and National Para-cycling Championships. In 2010, she won the national Para-cycling Championships for H1 criterium. She holds American and world records in multiple

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

events and medaled in discus throw and club throw at the 2016 Rio Paralympics. She placed fourth in the 100 m, 200 m and discus throw at the 2012 Paralympics. At the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, Mitchell competed in the F51 discus competition and placed fourth.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Cassie American female cyclists American female discus throwers Track and field athletes with disabilities Paralympic track and field athletes for the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from Muskogee, Oklahoma Track and field athletes from Oklahoma 1981 births Living people 21st-century American women scientists Scientists from Oklahoma Oklahoma State University alumni Emory University alumni Georgia Tech alumni Emory University faculty Georgia Tech faculty American biomedical engineers Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Paralympic silver medalists for the United States Paralympic bronze medalists for the United States Medalists at the 2015 Parapan American Games American women academics Cyclists from Oklahoma Wheelchair discus throwers Club throwers Paralympic discus throwers Paralympic club throwers Medalists at the World Para Athletics Championships World Para Athletics Championships winners 21st-century American sportswomen Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Parapan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Parapan American Games silver medalists for the United States Parapan American Games bronze medalists for the United States