I have spent my entire life playing sports both competitively and for fun. I idolized another athlete, though, that had multiple sclerosis and was supposed to represent America in the 1988 Olympics as a cyclist. This athlete's name is Maureen Manley. She lost her Olympic dream, which is the reason I always wanted to be like her and one day make it.

Since this is the year of the Olympics, I will look at another type of Olympic Games. The Olympic Games I will look at will focus on the Olympics that people with disabilities are able to compete in. These Olympic Games are the Paralympics. The Paralympics are played alongside the Olympic Games, which come every four years.

I have always competed at the highest level I could with the dreams of making the Olympics. This dream was stripped away in 2006 with my diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, though. I knew that I was not able to compete with healthy bodied people the way that I once was able to. This dream being taken away did not take away the drive to still be the best at the sports I participate in, though.

There are a number of sports that I will follow at the Paralympics, since I have participated in these sports at some point in my life.

Wheelchair Basketball

I played basketball in junior high and high school. I still like to play games such as horse and around the world. With my multiple sclerosis, running has been removed from my life even though I still go for walks. Since I'm not bound to a wheelchair, the game of wheelchair basketball is not something I can compete in. I will be watching the wheelchair basketball players, as I still love the game of basketball.

Paralympic Shooting

I was in the United States Navy in 2000, which where I first fell in love with shooting. The shooting range was my favorite part of boot camp. I learned that I was actually a pretty good shooter while in the Navy, but now enjoy going target practicing in the summertime when it is nice outside. I had dreams of one day participating in the Olympic Games as a marksman for the United States. This dream was stripped away after my diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, though. This is the reason that I will be following the Paralympic shooters.

Paralympic Cycling-Road

I grew up riding bikes and fell in love with the sport of cycling. I do not enjoy track cycling, though. I have multiple sclerosis and like the feeling of the open road versus track cycling as I have a fear that I will be in a crash with countless other cyclist. For this reason I stick to road cycling. I look forward to seeing the road cycling events being held at the Paralympics this year in London.

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Dreams of Olympic and Paralympic Games Stripped Away by Multiple Sclerosis