ORLANDO, Fla. — Marine Corps Captain Andrew Hairston has always enjoyed being part of a team.
That’s why he played sports growing up in the US Virgin Islands, which brought him to Bowie State University in Maryland to run for two years. That’s why he later joined the Marine Corps. And so, after his left leg was amputated from the knee, he switched to adaptive sports.
“The paracommunity is probably the most supportive,” Hairston said. “When I played athletics or football, you didn’t give up your trade secrets, you didn’t try to help the competition. But then you show up to a [para]bike race, and guys are just willing to help you on your journey, help you learn as much as possible, help you get better. Because the paracommunity is so small, the more competition we can get, the better it is for everyone.”
Hairston is one of approximately 250-300 military personnel taking part in The Department of Defense Warrior Games this month. He will compete in hand biking, on-track powerlifting, archery, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.
The Warrior Games is an event where former and active servicemen compete in adaptive sports. This year’s games will take place Friday through August 28 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort. The aim of the competition is to improve the rehabilitation of wounded warriors through athletics.
The first matches took place in 2010, and the event was last held in Tampa in 2019, as both the 2020 and 2021 matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While in charge of the games (they were originally run by the US Olympic Committee, then the Department of Defense took over in 2015 and the 2022 games are hosted by the US Army’s Training and Doctrine Command) and the sports offerings has changed over time. year, the Warrior Games mission remains the same:
“To support wounded, sick and wounded servicemen during their recovery journey,” said Warrior Games spokesperson Travis Claytor.
Five teams will compete, one for: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and US Special Operations Command. While each team handles the selection process differently, Claytor said, they all select athletes through some sort of trial process.
Hairston was selected for this year’s Warrior Games after making his adaptive sports debut in New York’s Central Park last June, just five months after the accident that resulted in the amputation of his left leg. He was hit by a car on January 23 while he was home from his broadcast. But in June, he entered his first handcycling race and came in third, instantly hooked.
“It was the first time I felt like myself again after losing my leg and being in a wheelchair for a year,” said Hairston. “So I guess that’s why it kind of stuck with me. The Marine Corps, they are very good at athletics and make sure the Marines go out and just take part in sports. So the moment they saw that I was doing well and cycling, they asked me to come out and join the team.”
Recovery is often an individual effort, Hairston explained. Focusing on himself to heal felt at odds with his identity as a Marine, which emphasized camaraderie. That’s why being part of Team Marine Corps is what he’s most looking forward to this month.
A life-saving venture
Air Force Captain Nikki Evenson discovered adaptive sports through her affiliate’s Wounded Warriors program. She was drawn to the chance to compete, archery, precision shooting and cycling, all events she will participate in during the Warrior Games. Evenson said she likes to get lost in the basics of photography and let her mind wander on bike rides.
Adaptive sports saved her life after undergoing multiple surgeries since 2019, in which she suffered a non-combat traumatic brain injury and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. In her teammates and competitors, Evenson said she found a group of people where she could be herself.
“I don’t like to be vulnerable, but being around them makes me feel like I can be,” she said. “Especially as an officer in the military, you feel like you have to be perfect, and you can’t show any of your crazy show, some of your imperfection. But among them you can show those vulnerabilities, and you will still be accepted. That is beautiful.”
What it means for family
Retired first-class non-commissioned officer in the Navy, Mark Coltrain, was scheduled to compete in the Warrior Games in 2021 before it was cancelled. For him, the 2022 games will be the culmination of nearly two years of intense training. He is scheduled to compete in wheelchair basketball, sitting volleyball, discus throw, shot put and archery.
During training surgery in 2019, Coltrain’s aorta “decided to fail,” he said, and he had “multiple strokes.” His artery was repaired and he was fitted with a mechanical heart valve. The strokes resulted in partial vision loss and mild cognitive problems, such as short-term memory loss, so he had to retire.
“I saw life afterward as without purpose, without identity,” Coltrain said of his mental state before finding adaptive sports. “So this kind of curbed that ending, saying, ‘Hey, you know, the Navy will always be part of your identity.’ And there are still things I can do for the Navy, for the United States without actually serving actively.
Coltrain, from Edgewater, Florida, is looking forward to seeing his family compete at Disney. His wife Riley, their three children – Thea, Freya and Koa – and his wife’s parents will be in attendance. He is excited to see him pursue the passion that gave him the goal.
“Programs like this are the reason kids get their fathers back, women get their husbands back, or husbands get their wives back,” Coltrain said. “I just want to [people] to know how important it is, not just for the athlete and the service worker, but how important it is for the whole family.”
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