A Harnett County teen made the initial 2026 U.S. Paralympic
Sled Hockey Team and will compete in the 2026 Witner Paralympics, Team USA
announced on Friday.

Kayden Beasley, 19, is set to make his Paralympic debut in
Milan. The Coats native is among 14 players named to the initial 2026 U.S.
Paralympic Sled Hockey Team.

“We are thrilled to name the first 14 players to the
Paralympic team,” U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team general manager Dan Brennan
said in a news release. “It is a great blend of high-powered forwards who can
score, a solid dependable defensive core and goaltending.

“We’re excited to bring this group to Milan and to round out
our roster to 17 players in the coming weeks.”

Here are the other players on the Team USA roster:

Five-time Paralympian Josh Pauls (Green Brook, New Jersey)Four-time Paralympian Declan Farmer (Tampa, Florida)Four-time Paralympian Jen Lee (Daly City, California)Brody Roybal (Northlake, Illinois)Three-time Paralympian Travis Dodson (Deming, New Mexico)Three-time Paralympian Noah Grove (Frederick, Maryland)Three-time Paralympian Josh Misiewicz (La Grange, Illinois)Three-time Paralympian Jack Wallace (Franklin Lakes, New Jersey)Two-time Paralympian David Eustace (Stoneham, Massachusetts)Two-time Paralympian Malik Jones (Aurora, Colorado)Two-time Paralympian Griffin LaMarre (Haverhill, Massachusetts)Two-time Paralympian Evan Nichols (Haymarket, Virginia)First-time Paralympian Liam Cunningham (River Falls, Wisconsin)

Beasley, a 4-foot, 135-pound defenseman made his U.S.
National Sled Hockey Team debut in the 2024-25 season. He was a gold medalist
on the 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championship team.

Beasley started
playing adaptive sport in 2019. Nearly five years to the day Beasley first
touched the ice, he skated in the Czech Republic, scoring his first goal for
Team USA.

Kayden Beasley and his brother, Kayden, were adopted a
couple of years apart from the same adoption agency in China.

“They are not biological brothers, but they are
brothers in every sense of the word,” Amy Beasley told WRAL Sports in
March 2025. “Our lives are richer and better, because they’re a part of
it.”

Kayden Beasley is a double-leg amputee above the knees.

“I was born without legs,” he said. “I don’t know
anything different at this point. I try to not think about it, but I don’t care
at this point.”

Kayden Beasley said it was his dream to play in the 2026
Paralympics in Italy.

Team USA’s quest for a fifth-straight Paralympic gold medal
begins against host Italy at 11:05 a.m. ET on March 7 at Milano Santagiulia Ice
Hockey Arena.

WRAL’s Louis Fernandez contributed to this story.