Patrick Halgren can’t get enough of the cheeseburgers at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Center. 

Free housing, a world-class training facility, and all the food at his disposal, Halgren’s life is “eerily good.” 

It’s a life the Paralympian never imagined when he was putting chains on tires at various ski resorts around the world, nor when he lost his left leg in an accident in 2013. Especially not when he was “chasing snow” 300 days a year while living in his van, Vanessa. 

But over a decade since his accident, Halgren is a two-time Paralympian after competing in Beijing and being named to the 72-member U.S. Paralympic Team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games on Tuesday. Since becoming a professional skier, Halgren has spread happiness wherever he goes with an endless feeling of gratitude for his life as a Team USA athlete.  

“It’s very rare to go from parking cars and putting chains on tires to being a pro skier,” Halgren said. “To find this niche grey area and be able to do that … I feel like I’m on a mission from God to spread love in this world and show people it’s not only OK to struggle, but it’s necessary for success.” 

Halgren, 33, trains to honor his late twin brother Lucas “Sven” Halgren, who encouraged him to take up paraskiing after an accident in 2013 resulted in his left leg being amputated above the knee. Before Sven passed, the brothers worked at various ski resorts around the world as self-proclaimed “ski bums.”

Before Sven passed in December of 2016, the brothers had spent the 2016 winter season working together at The Remarkables ski resort in Queenstown, New Zealand, waking up in the early morning hours to work before skiing on their lunch break.  

“It stinks cause this was all his idea, and he never got to see me other than when we were together parking cars,” Halgren said. “Those years are why I’m now oozing empathy. I’m so happy. I don’t have to do chains for four hours before I can go skiing. I’ve been sober since then, and all my dreams have come true.”

To accomplish his Paralympic dream, Halgren leads a life reminiscent of the one he led with his brother, but with more resources, and cheeseburgers. Halgren trains on the mountains of Winter Park Resort, where he has also lived and worked for the last 10 years, but has also trained at the U.S.Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs for the last year and a half. 

“I’m able to push myself even more, and my dreams get bigger and bigger,” Halgren said. “With these resource, who knows how many gold medals I can bring home and how much love I can spread in this world. There is no ceiling, it feels like.”

One of the ways Halgren impacts others is through a weekly video series on his Instagram @powercasa32 called “Stretch It Sundays,” where he candidly discusses his progress to his 11.5k followers while encouraging them to work hard and be nice. 

His posts receive dozens of comments and direct messages sharing the impact of his words.

“I just try to show people that anybody can go and do stuff, and it will benefit the people that love you,” Halgren said. “Health is wealth anyway you look at it, and it’s going to take you out of thinking about the past and put you into the moment, and I think that’s where happiness is.”

Halgren looks forward to competing in Cortina, but even more so to do it with his parents, Kathy and Peter, present. They still live in Halgren’s childhood home in Connecticut, and it will be their first time in Europe. 

“This is going to be the best experience of my life,” Halgren said. “I think every day is the best moment, but that is going to be so amazing. They’ve given me everything. They created me, and I am so fortunate that they taught me to work hard and be nice. Mom always preached turning negative into a positive, and that’s now my superpower. My father taught me how to ski. It’s eerie how it’s all worked out perfectly.”

In the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Winter Games, what Halgren described as “a James Bond movie,” Halgren placed 24th in slalom, achieving his goal of a top-25 finish. After three World Championships, he will compete in five events in Cortina, including his favorite: the downhill and Super G.

Sven taught Halgren how fragile life is and that living with frustration and anger is no way to live, so he is doing the opposite. 

“When you pick up hot coals to throw at someone, you burn yourself just as much,” Halgren said, “It’s been an existential awakening these last couple of years and since (Sven’s) death. I’m so glad I listened to him. Life sucks. So you better find stuff you enjoy.”

That includes cheeseburgers.