Koehn Boyd of Minneapolis spends most of his time in the swimming pool, and it’s been that way since he was eight years old. He is thriving as a competitive swimmer, and is doing so without any stomach muscles.

Koehn is like clock work when he practices in the pool, he competes against others, himself and a stopwatch, getting faster and faster.

“I’ll find my thing, and luckily I did, swimming is my thing,” Koehn said with a smile on his face.

Koehn trains in Edina with his swim coach Jeff Rodriguez, they have been working together since 2021 and the progress is starting to payoff.

“He can do everything really well, he loves to train,” said Rodriguez. “Then the competition piece is, he doesn’t like to lose.”

When Koehn competes, he’s always one of the fastest in the pool, which is incredible considering what he’s been through.

Koehn was born with Prune Belly Syndrome. He doesn’t have any stomach muscles but has scars from 17 surgeries.

“When I do my butterfly and turn, it’s called an open turn, it does require your core muscles to pull your legs in,” Koehn said. “I’ve had to learn how to work around that. My turns are a little slower than other people’s but it’s ok because I just have to work a little bit harder.”

Koehn is proving his disadvantage doesn’t stop him from winning. Koehn continues to put his name in swimming record books. This summer he he broke three American Paralympic swim records at the Hartford Nationals in Birmingham, Alabama. He has six American disability records total.

Qualifying for the Paralympics in Los Angeles in 2028 is a big picture goal for Koehn.

“He’s really able to show up and do something with this, that has been really inspiring,” Rodriguez said.

When Koehn looks at his stomach, he is reminded of a disability he was born with, but when he is shirtless, and in the pool, he is in his comfort zone.

“I’m not ashamed of it or anything. It’s part of me, it’s who I am.”