[2] Her parents, a teacher and a physician, moved their family to Butte, Montana when Popovich was five.

[3] During childhood, she wore braces to straighten her back and legs, and underwent about a dozen surgeries.

When Popovich was 12, she joined a swim club and by the age of 15, she was competing at the 2000 Paralympic Games.

[3] Popovich received a Bachelor of Science degree from Colorado State University in May 2007, and her hometown is listed as Silver Bow, Montana.

[4] In 2005, Popovich won the first ESPY Award for Best Female Athlete with a Disability and was named the Women's Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year.