ESPN

An Athlete Whose Power was Born Within.

'Israel Del Toro'—a doc feature that shines a light on the inspiring story of a retired Air Force Master Sergeant whose life was forever changed by war. 
Produced by Amanda Postel for Prince Harry’s Invictus games on ESPN,  this Emmy nominated documentary feature profiles the remarkable life of Israel Del Toro, a retired Air Force Senior Master Sergeant Working as a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, Del Toro drove over an IED and suffered severe burns over 80 percent of his body, as well as the loss of one hand and most of the fingers of the other. He remained in a coma for about three months and was given less than a 20 percent chance of survival. But in spite of that—and the fact that he was told he would need a respirator to breathe and probably never walk again, he walked out of the hospital two months after coming out of the coma.

In 2010, he became the first fully disabled airman to be permitted to re-enlist. Although disappointed that he would not be able to deploy, he immediately threw himself into the job of training others for the dangerous and critical job of being a JTAC.

To follow that up, he joined the World Class Athlete Program at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, training at the Olympic Training Center and earned the silver medal for power lifting, and gold in the shot put competition.

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