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Several athletes competing in the Paris Games in the coming weeks share a connection to Ford team members in North America.
Michael Hammer, director of strategy and operations for Ford’s Global Dealer Group, has always been close to his younger brother Chris, and they’ve maintained a close bond through sports. This summer, that is what will bring their entire extended family together in Paris for the Paralympics, where Chris will be competing in the triathlon.
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Chris Hammer will be competing in the triathlon in Paris, his fourth Paralympics.
When the Hammer brothers were young, their parents encouraged Michael to play hockey, but it was Chris, who was born without a left hand, who ultimately took to the sport after playing with his friends.
Chris, who now lives in the Phoenix area, took up running in middle school and high school and eventually did the same at Michigan’s Grand Valley State University. While in college, Hammer joined the U.S. Paralympics Track and Field Team. He switched to the triathlon in 2016 with little competitive experience in bicycling or swimming. He’ll be competing in his fourth Paralympics later this summer.
“He decided that he wanted to play, and he was always able to find a way,” said the elder Hammer. “There isn’t a single thing I can think of that my brother didn’t do because he was born without a left hand. So, it really is incredible to look at and see with that type of mindset that anything is possible.”
Hammer will be in Paris with his family and his brother’s family, cheering on Chris, 38, whose chances of medaling have never been better after fourth-place finishes in 2016 and 2020.
“Our hopes are even higher that he might be able to get a medal, and we’ll be cheering him on in person and to have his family there and to have my family there is going to really be special,” Michael Hammer said. “As we get closer now, it’s starting to come up and I’ve managed to talk to a lot of people within Ford, because it’s really exciting for me to share the pride in his accomplishments and his opportunity to represent the U.S.”
Several friends and family members of Ford team members will be competing in the Paris Games. Here’s a roundup of those who will be competing in the coming weeks. Let us know in the comments section if there’s anyone else that should be included.
Tyler Miller, brother of Jason Miller, Supervisor of Ford’s Infotainment Test Solutions Group, will be playing for the Canadian men’s Paralympic wheelchair basketball team in Paris. Miller, 40, has participated in the last three Paralympic Games, with the team taking gold in London in 2012 and more recently finishing third at last year’s Parapan American Games.
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Tyler Miller will be going for his second gold medal with Team Canada in wheelchair basketball.
Tyler, a Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, native, was involved in a workplace accident while pursuing a millwright apprenticeship, which left him paralyzed at age 22. He took up the sport following a lengthy recovery on the encouragement of a friend and rose quickly through the ranks.
“I’m really proud to see how he plays, he still plays very similar to how we played when we were kids,” Jason Miller said, adding that his brother loves teaching others and influencing the next generation of players. “Somebody with a life-changing event could have gone to a very dark place, but he has used that to fuel his love for sports and he’s been able to win championships for Canada and help others.”
Three fellow triathletes, friends and teammates of Ford’s Ana Coboj Rivera, who works in Manufacturing Planning and Logistics at Hermosillo Stamping and Assembly Plant in Mexico, will be competing in the event in Paris: Rosa Tapia, Lizeth Rueda, and Crisanto Grajales, who is making his fourth appearance in the Games.
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Lizeth Rueda will be competing in the triathlon for the second time in the Games.
Coboj Rivera will be there in Paris cheering on her friends who inspire her every day.
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Crisanto Grajales will be making his fourth appearance in the Games.
“They are always giving their best and they motivate you to be better every day,” she said. “You see how they fight for their dreams.”
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Rosa Tapia is making her debut in the Games in Paris.
The trio competes July 30-31.
Woodhaven Stamping Plant industrial engineer Kieran O’Brien is headed to Paris to watch his brother-in-law, Heath Baldwin, who will be competing in the decathlon. Baldwin, 23, is making his first appearance in the Games after taking first place in the decathlon at the U.S. Track and Field trials last month. The 10-event decathlon is Aug. 2-3.
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Decathlete Heath Baldwin (center) is Paris-bound, with his sister, Hope O’Brien, and brother-in-law, Ford engineer Kieran O’Brien, traveling too.
“It’s surreal to be going to (Paris) to cheer him on,” O’Brien said. “I’ve been watching him compete since high school. It’s been super exciting to witness his incredible progress in all 10 events over the years.”
Baldwin, Michigan State University’s two-time reigning Male Athlete of the Year, is ranked sixth in the world.
Olivia Brett, cousin of Ford Electrical Lab Test Engineer Kevin Brett, will be competing in the women’s canoe sprint K4 500 meters for New Zealand in Paris. Her team won the World Championships in 2023 and has had two podium finishes in the World Cup. This will be Olivia’s debut in the Games.
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