Angela Madsen

Angela Madsen is a 50 year old Grandmother of three from Long Beach, CA who loves to surf.  She is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and a life member of both the Disabled American Veterans and the Paralyzed Veterans of America.  Angela also enjoys working with newly injured vets to get them involved with adaptive sports.  In February of 2003, the Amateur Athletic Foundation named Angela as a recipient of the Women Who Inspire Us Award; in September of 2003, she received the Leo Reilly, Jr. Award for outstanding spirit and determination.

 On February 7, 2008, she became the first paraplegic woman to ROW across the Atlantic Ocean.  Her rowing partner, Franck Festor, an amputee from France, did not speak English and Angela does not speak French.  They rowed nearly 3000 miles in 67 days, coming in 8^th place in the pair’s class.  There were 22 boats in the race and they were the only physically challenged athletes www.rowoflife.com

Angela is also on the US Rowing Team and competed in the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing, China.  She is a 4 time World Championship Gold Medalist and a Level 3 Rowing Coach.  She is the Founder, Director and Coach/instructor of the California Adaptive Rowing Program, a non-profit program which teaches disabled people to row since 2000.  www.carplb.net

In 2009 Angela rowed across the Indian Ocean from Geraldton West Australia 3,600 miles to Mauritius an Island east of Madagascar. A Crew of Eight on a 58 day adventure that set many world rowing records. Fastest rowing crossing of the Indian Ocean, she is now one of the First women to row across the Indian Ocean and the first disabled woman to row across 2 oceans.

In 2010 Angela was part of another world record setting rowing crew of 4 women. They became the first and fastest women’s crew to circumnavigate Great Britain and Angela has become the first and only person with a disability to have rowed the 2,010 miles non stop and unsupported from London Tower Bridge to London Tower Bridge in 51 days.

Angela is 1 of  the 9 women in the entire world who has rowed 2 oceans and is the only woman in the world who has rowed 2 oceans and completed the circumnavigation of Great Britain in a row boat.