BALTIMORE — As Brad Snyder stood atop the podium in the London Aquatics Centre at the 2012 Paralympics, a gold medal dangling from his neck, he heard cheers from the crowd.
He felt the pressure disappear as he claimed victory in the 400-meter freestyle, a race he wanted to win for his family and friends who feared he might lose his life exactly one year earlier.
And he knew almost everyone in the London venue had a smile plastered on their faces. He just couldn’t see the grins.
On Sept. 7, 2011, Snyder was working as a Naval explosive ordinance disposal officer when an improvised explosive device robbed him of his vision but not his desire to serve.