Paralympics offers stories of hope, courage, faith

Marcia Malsar hobbled into Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana Stadium on Wednesday night, leaning on her cane and holding up the torch for the opening ceremonies of the 2016 Paralympic Games. In front of thousands, she slipped on the rain-soaked floor and dropped the torch. Officials ran up to help, but she gestured them away. The Brazilian 1984 Paralympic champion pulled herself up, picked up the torch, and kept going.

Malsar’s resolve epitomized the Paralympics Games: Athletes unfazed by tremendous odds are delivering world-class sporting performances.

Many of them say their Christian faith helped them overcome.

“Bearing the name of God … I’m not competing for just myself,” said Grace Norman, a Christian on Team USA. “I know I can do nothing without Him and that I can do amazing things with Him.”

Norman was born without a left foot due to a congenital condition called amniotic bands. The teenager comes from a family of athletes and tried several different sports before starting to run. Eventually she got a cheetah blade, a carbon fiber replacement for the leg she doesn’t have. It helped her compete at a higher level and qualify for Rio’s Paralympics in both the 400 meter and the triathlon.

Norman said her faith keeps her focused. She does not question why God did not make her “normal.” She said she would regret losing the witnessing opportunities her disability gives her.

Drew Bremer, a member of the American soccer team, admitted he sometimes considers his disability a hardship. He was born with a condition that stiffens and weakens the muscles on one side of his body. But Bremer said his faith helps him push out of his comfort zone, in this case all the way to Rio.

Stefanie Reed, who runs track and field for Great Britain, lost her leg after a car hit her when she was 15. She told the media that as she lay in her hospital bed, after she knew the doctors had amputated her leg, she prayed a real prayer for the first time.

Reed said God filled her with peace instead of anger. She chose to trust Him with her life and He brought her from the hospital all the way to the Paralympics. She said He told her: “Stefanie … when you’re on that start line and when those 80,000 people cheer for you that is how much I love you.”

The United States won eight medals on the first day, with the wheelchair basketball teams doing especially well. Rebecca Myers, deaf since birth, won a gold medal in swimming. Shawn Morelli, who has nerve damage and partial blindness, led the field home in cycling. Some of the events coming up over the next week include full-contact wheelchair rugby, soccer played blind, and sitting volleyball.

Ticket sales are well below London 2012 standards, and the games have felt the financial strain. But athletes like Norman, Reed, and Bremer are still there to win, though not for themselves.