About Dennis

  • Paralympic Games Silver Medalist

  • 2023 and 2024 UCI World Champion Road Mens Trike

  • Para Pan Am Games Gold and Silver Medalist

  • 5x UCI Paracycling World Championship medalist

  • 7x Gold Medalist and 5x Silver medalist UCI Paracycling World Cup

  • 8x US Paracycling Men’s Trike National Champion

  • 7x Gold Medalist US Paracycling Open

  • Gold Medalist US Paralympics Tokyo Trials

  • 2022 and 2024 US Paraclimbing National Champion

  • Awarded the third highest meritorious medal in the US Military, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal by US Special Operations Command for intelligence operations in combat in 2010.

  • Awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal by a Defense Department Agency for intelligence operations in combat in 2007.

  • Master of Science Degree in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism from University of Utah

Family

Being a stay-at-home Dad is Dennis’ primary job before being a professional athlete. Dennis and his wife, Krista, are proud parents of a daughter and son who are both in elementary school. You can find Dennis at home playing with his kids, making dinners, doing laundry, and fortunately, no longer changing diapers. Dennis and Krista are passionate about getting their kids outdoors and instilling an outdoor ethos into their mindset. The Connors family can often be found riding bikes, paddle boarding (well, Dennis sits in a kayak), rock climbing, and downhill skiing in Bend and Lake Tahoe.

Cycling

As the only male Trike rider on the US Paracycling National Team, Dennis won the Silver Medal in the Road Race at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games and is the 2023 and 2024 Mens Trike Road Race World Champion. Dennis is also seven-time international World Cup winner, twelve-time medalist, five-time World Championship medalist, and eight-time National Champion.

Dennis began cycling in 2016 with Project Hero, a veteran’s non-profit that focuses on mental well-being for veterans. He cycled recreationally until 2019 when he attended his first paracycling event. In 2020 Dennis had a stroke so he moved to the trike. His friends joked the stroke was a blessing in disguise as it forced his move to the trike which allowed them to safely ride next to him without fear of Dennis crashing into them or something on the road. You see, due to his TBI, Dennis couldn’t ride in a straight line and would subtly veer in one direction or another. You can find Dennis training around the Portland and Beaverton hills and sometimes on the mountain roads of Bend.

Climbing

Dennis competes in the Men’s RP2 Para rock climbing category and its the 2022 and 2024 National Champion. He has been climbing since he was 11 years old and has traveled the world in both competitions and in search of amazing rock. From 2001-2003, Dennis competed on the able-bodied US Rock Climbing Team as a junior and has worked with multiple sponsors during his time as a climber. After exiting the Marine Corps in 2012, he and his wife moved to Utah to be closer to climbing. Dennis believes that climbing and cycling are very similar as both allow you to go places and see the world from a different perspective. With Paraclimbing added to the Paralympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028 Dennis will keep climbing. He is also working on a project to be the first Paraclimber to free climb (use hands and feet with ropes) the Free Rider in Yosemite Valley and be the first Paraclimber to climb 5.14. If Dennis isn’t out on his bike, you can probably find him with his family somewhere climbing.

Snowboard

Dennis has been snowboarding most of his life. After his military service, Dennis loved riding in the backcountry of Utah Bend and Tahoe. He was even a backcountry avalanche instructor and snowboard instructor during graduate school in Utah. However, he noticed he was having balance problems when he was diagnosed with TBIs. When his stroke happened in 2020 he was sure that sliding down mountains was over. His ethos of “never quit doing the things you love” was really solidified during his recovery. Dennis recently learned to snowboard again with the use of outriggers. Who knows, with his love of snow sports, maybe the Winter Paralympics in Milano Cortina in 2026 is in the cards?

Military Service

Dennis served in the United States Marine Corps from 2003-2012.  For nine years Dennis worked in multiple disciplines of Intelligence.  Dennis worked with the DEA and other government agencies in South America and the Caribbean supporting counter-narcotics missions.  Then in 2007, he deployed to Iraq to support a government agency, the US Army, and US Army Special Forces.  In 2009 Dennis deployed for a second time to Iraq with a US Marine Infantry unit running more than 150 combat missions based on his intelligence work.  Dennis was then selected to support a Tier 1 Special Operations unit and deployed for a third time to Iraq.  His work led to the successful capture of multiple high-level terrorists in Iraq.  Dennis has been awarded multiple awards for his meritorious service during combat.