Amid life's rough waters, Paralympian sails on
By Mike Lopresti, Gannett News Service
From the website of the man who — as much as any American Olympian you could ever meet — refuses to give up:
"I am looking forward," Nick Scandone sent from China, "to fulfilling my lifelong dream."
Never mind, for the moment, that his life includes Lou Gehrig's disease. The use of his legs is gone. His arms have seriously weakened. Today was harder than yesterday, and tomorrow will be harder still. How many tomorrows he has, nobody knows.
And still, he sails on.
The great moments of sport have continued in Beijing, long after Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt left town. This week, it's the Paralympic Games, where every athlete has had a personal mountain to climb and a handicap to ignore. Every athlete has had daily odds to beat.
None more than he.
The word from the Qingdao sailing venue Wednesday was that Scandone and teammate Maureen McKinnon-Tucker were leading the two-person keelboat competition after two days of racing. The event stretches all week, with the gold medal decided Saturday.
If they pull it off, what a roar there should be. Will the White House notice? Will the people who make Wheaties? Will you?
The Paralympics do not grab the world's attention like the Olympic Games. There will be no prime-time coverage when Scandone and McKinnon-Tucker go for their gold.
But there would be, if Nielsen ratings were based on heart.
The disease struck a healthy yachtsman in 2002. It is officially known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS. There is no cure, and the average life expectancy after diagnosis is two to five years.
What could Nick Scandone do? He sailed on.
They qualified for the Paralympics last year, making China in 2008 the beacon that could draw them through, however rough the waters were around them.
Since then, there have been funds to raise, plans to make, work to do. Not a day of it easy. Not an hour.
Scandone's condition has deteriorated as ALS has its way. McKinnon-Tucker, paralyzed from a fall 13 years ago, has had to see her 2-year-old son go through treatment for a brain tumor. She thought about quitting, but where would that leave her teammate?
So together, they sailed on. Many athletes plan for the current competition and more to come. These two understand this might well be their one chance. The 42-year-old man from California, the 43-year-old woman from Massachusetts.
Next week, next month, next year does not matter. This is about today.
And so far, they are winning.
"We can both compartmentalize our lives," McKinnon-Tucker was quoted as saying in a story months ago. "Sometimes it is easier to navigate the racecourse than to navigate in life."
Their loved ones watch in wonder and awe, and probably eyes that have teared more than once. There must be times when they feel so helpless.
But those two out on that boat, they are not helpless. Not today.
From Scandone on his website, which has a name to fit the occasion, alove4sailing.com:
"At the dock before the first race I had about a 10-minute moment of tears. ... It's hard to describe what I was feeling, but it was definitely a sense of accomplishment."
One who understands a little of that is Sharon Matland, vice president of patient services for the ALS Association.
"It gives me chills to think about what he's doing," she said over the phone. "You hear about how limited he is physically, how his arms have weakened. It shows how much he wants to be doing this, that he has ALS, but ALS is not his life.
"For families and other people living with ALS, this is going to be an amazing thing to watch."
Matland sees patients trying to get the most from every day.
But nothing quite like this.
The Paralympics are for those who insist on living. The blind judo athlete. The swimmer who lost a leg. The paralyzed basketball player.
But nothing quite like this.
"The thing that Nick has that differentiates him," Matland said, "is that he has a progressive disease. Tomorrow he might not have the strength that he had yesterday. It's a changing environment for him."
But the gold medal is so close. If they win, no disease, no sucker punch from fate will ever take it away from them.
Scandone on his website:
"May we sail our best and enjoy the ride."
And may chance, for once, smile upon them.
http://www.usatoday.com:80/sports/co...-sailing_N.htm