The Other Olympic Games

The 2024 Summer Paralympics opened last week in Paris, France. Over 4,000 athletes with disabilities from all over the world are competing for medals in such events as swimming, fencing, cycling, taekwondo, table tennis, and even soccer. These remarkable young men and women do not have the same bodies or skill sets as the Olympians of a few weeks ago, but they are every bit as remarkable, maybe even more so. These disabled athletes have had to overcome unbelievable hardships just to survive, let alone compete in the world’s foremost sporting event.

The television audience for the Paralympics pales in comparison to the Olympic Games. In fact, the viewership for the entire two weeks of the Paralympics will equal about one night of the earlier games. But the competitive spirit and determination will be just as fierce. If you appreciate athletes competing for the sheer love of sport, then these games are a must see. 

Take, for instance, the Italian fencer and two time gold medal winner Bebo Vio. As a child, she contracted meningitis and had both her forearms amputated as well as her legs at the knees. Think about that for a moment—life without hands or legs! Such a tragedy would have crushed many of us, but not Bebo. In spite of her severe handicaps, she persevered and achieved excellence in her sport. Her mantra, “If it seems impossible, then it can be done,” has guided her life. She is now competing for her third gold medal in fencing.

Bebo Vio

The Paralympic athletes have an assortment of physical and mental impairments—cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injuries, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, amputations, blindness, as well as other forms of physical or mental disabilities. The participants in these games have not only had to train their bodies and minds, like athletes in the Olympic Games, but they have also had to overcome severe psychological and emotional trauma. I am in awe of these amazing human beings! Their stories of courage in the face of life’s cruel injustices are beautiful reminders that it doesn’t take a whole body to be a complete person. 

Just last May (2023) Ali Truwit and a girlfriend were on vacation swimming off Turks and Caicos in the Atlantic Ocean, enjoying life as  recent graduates of Yale, when they were attacked by a shark. The shark bit off Ali’s lower left leg.

Ali Truwit

Ali was some distance from the boat, and since the crew could not hear her screams, she had no choice but to swim back to the boat, minus her left leg. It was a terrifying experience as the shark continued to threaten her, bumping into her body over and over again.

Over the course of the next few months, Ali went through numerous surgeries in an attempt to stave off infection and save as much of her leg as possible. Sadness, depression, self-pity were all emotions that she battled. But instead of dwelling on the question, “Why did this happened to me?” Ali rephrased the question to, “Why not throw everything into something?”

She threw herself into swimming and now, just a little over a year later, Ali will swim in the Paralympics. She has transformed her grief to grit. I can’t wait to watch her compete!

Chuck Aoki is a three time Paralympic medalist in wheelchair rugby. He was born with a genetic condition which resulted in not having feeling below his knees or elbows. He hasn’t been able to walk since he was twelve, but that hasn’t stopped him from competing in sports. This is his third Paralympics. He is a tireless advocate for people with disabilities and an inspiring human being.

Chuck Aoki

Jessica Long is another Paralympian who has overcome adversity to compete in these games. Born in Siberia, Russia, to unmarried teenaged parents, she was soon adopted by an American couple. At the age of 18 months, both of Jessica’s legs were amputated below the knees due to fibular hemimelia.

In school, Jessica often felt out-of-place and had a hard time fitting in. Then one day she got into a swimming pool and her world changed. In water, Jessica felt like everyone else and her disability didn’t stand out as much. She realized that the only thing that would impact her future was her attitude toward life. If she changed her attitude, she could change her life. And that’s exactly what she did. She turned her pain into power!

Jessica Long

Jessica has won 29 medals in swimming, 16 of them gold. She is an acclaimed speaker for people with disabilities and a best-selling author (See Beyond the Surface). Jessica Long has not allowed her disability to define her.

There are over 4,000 stories in the Paris Paralympics similar to those of Bebo, Ali, Chuck, and Jessica. Most of these athletes will return home without a medal but not one of them will be a loser. What they have achieved in just overcoming their impairments serves as an inspiration, and reminds us that attitude determines our destiny more than circumstances.  

All of us have disabilities of one kind or another. We may wear corrective lenses or take medication to control blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol, asthma or some other chronic condition. Some of us have learning disabilities or physical impairments that have been with us since birth. Every human being is flawed in some way; some flaws are simply more noticeable than others.

What we can learn from the Paralympic athletes is that our physical or mental disadvantages do not have to be roadblocks to our dreams, only detours. In the words of Bebe Vilo, “If it seems impossible, then it can be done.”