(NEXSTAR) - Mike Schultz, a 12-year veteran of the U.S. Paralympic team and prominent equipment innovator, is competing in his final Paralympic Games this week in Cortina, Italy. Schultz, who recently won a World Cup event in Colorado, is a primary equipment provider for nearly 90% of lower-limb amputee athletes participating in the Games. The 2026 Games mark the end of a career that has seen Schultz balance elite competition with running his prosthetics shop. Unlike the previous Winter Games in Beijing, Schultz is competing in Italy with a full contingent of family members present to support his final bid for a gold medal. Schultz serves a dual role in Cortina as both a competitor and a technical resource for his peers. He estimates that more than 90% of lower limb amputee athletes on the world stage use equipment produced in his specialized prosthetics shop. Schultz personally builds every component that is distributed from the facility. "But yeah, as far as I know, pretty much every lower limb amputee is using equipment from my bio app shop," Schultz said. "Me personally built every component that goes out of there. So it’s pretty rad to see it being used worldwide at on the world stage here at the Paralympics." The technical demand often requires Schultz to assist international competitors between his own training sessions. He noted that athletes from various countries frequently approach him for mechanical support or replacement parts during the Games. "Just the other day I had an athlete come up to me and you know, he was needing some extra parts or this and that, or help with the setup," Schultz said. He added that while the work keeps him busy, he is grateful to contribute to the performance of other athletes alongside his own teammates. Schultz enters the 2026 Games following a successful season, including a victory at his most recent World Cup event held in Colorado in late February. He described his training as a strategic four-year progression designed to reach a performance peak in Italy. "I had a plan and stuck to it with this, you know, progression to be my best here right now," Schultz said. He credited the overall progression of the Para snowboard program over the last three years for pushing his limits as an athlete and driving improvements in prosthetic equipment. While Schultz is focused on a gold medal, he emphasized that his final appearance is also about personal experience. He has spent 12 years with the U.S. team and admitted that the realization of his impending retirement has been emotional. "I’ve been doing this with the US team for 12 years now, and it’s been such an enormous part of my life. And I can see the end of it. And on one side, I’m very much ready to retire and move on to some other things," Schultz said. Schultz will compete in the Para snowboard events throughout the remainder of the Games. He encouraged supporters who could not travel to Italy to follow the competition remotely. "I’m sorry you’re not here, but definitely tune in and watch Paris Snowboard, you know, just fly down these beautiful mountains," Schultz said. "It’s gonna be some epic racing, so don’t miss it." All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by Nexstar. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by Nexstar staff before being published