Sarah Reinertsen a swim with dolphins at

Delphinus Riviera Maya and gives us a lesson about life

 As her reward for being the first woman with an artificial leg to finish in the Ironman World Triathlon Championship, Sarah Reinertsen received as her prize, a swim with dolphins at Delphinus Riviera Maya. In the athlete's words this was the best reward. Completing the Ironman competition with its 3.8 km open ocean swim, 180 km bicycle race, and 42.2 km run, all in a single day, is an extraordinary feat for any human being, but for someone with an artificial leg it is positively spectacular.

Her achievements include participating in the 10th season of The Amazing Race and being the youngest member of the US Paralympics team in Barcelona '92. Sarah commented on her determination to achieve goals despite her challenges: "Throughout my life, growing up disabled I wasn't always included in sports and I guess I always wanted to prove that I could do anything that I put my mind to; and I saw a lot of men with prosthetic legs doing those things and I knew that I could do it too and although there aren't many disabled people who've done the Ironman yet, I think we are showing the world what's possible and anybody; you can do anything you put your mind to."

Living with an amputated leg since the age of seven, Ms. Reinertsen admires her body and considers it a treasure despite the absence of a limb: "I feel like my body is a gift and I think that I have to use what I'm given, I don't sit and feel sad that I only have one leg, look, I have both my arms, and I have my other leg and I have my mind and I have my spirit and I want to make the most of my life while I'm here on this planet. Truly, crossing the finish line of an Ironman is one of the most incredible feelings in the world, so that's always my motivation to get to that finish line no matter what."

Sarah is an activist and spokeswoman for the Challenged Athletes Foundation. Her messages of strength and perseverance are an inspiration for the disabled, giving them strength and collecting funds for artificial limbs to help them improve their athletic abilities: "(...) I really want to help the next generation of athletes and help people to discover sports and I really want to be sure that people who need prosthetic limbs can get them, because it's very expensive to get this equipment, so it's part of my work to give back and help others."

Following her wonderful experience with the dolphins at Delphinus Riviera Maya, Sarah reflected: "They are so smart, I think we haven't even understood how smart they really are, it's almost like they are smarter than we are, but I was really impressed by how patient and sweet they were, and very playful. I think we can get very serious in our life and get cut off in our jobs with the stress but they really taught me to be more playful with life. I would like to thank Delphinus for giving me an unforgettable moment in my life, and because they are very friendly, helpful and just plain marvelous."

Sarah is a celebrity in the US. She lives in New York and speaks Spanish very well having lived in Spain. She has been the face on commercials for one of the world's largest car manufacturers.