{"id":64165,"date":"2017-07-11T19:48:57","date_gmt":"2017-07-12T00:48:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=64165"},"modified":"2017-07-11T19:48:57","modified_gmt":"2017-07-12T00:48:57","slug":"army-takes-warrior-games-gold-medal-coach-has-message-for-team-and-others","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/army-takes-warrior-games-gold-medal-coach-has-message-for-team-and-others\/","title":{"rendered":"Army takes Warrior Games gold medal; coach has message for team and others"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Sye Bennefield<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the athletes went down the line, both greeting and congratulating each other, Army Head Coach Rod Williams, simply watched. <\/p>\n

Chicago played host to the Department of Defense (DoD) Warrior Games on June 30 \u2013 July 8. It was the first time the Warrior Games was hosted outside of a military base or Olympic venue. <\/p>\n

Williams was there along with approximately 265 wounded service members and their families. He\u2019s no stranger to competing, he\u2019s been competing against himself from the very beginning.
\n
\nAt just nine months old, Williams contracted polio. From then, to when he was a senior at San Jose State University, his sole means of transportation was crutches and braces.
\n

\"Warrior
Team Army coach Rod Williams watches his team at the Warrior Games.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\n\u201cMy mom, bless her soul\u2026They told her that if I lived I would be [confined] to a wheelchair for the rest of my life,\u201d said Williams. \u201cThey wanted her to give me up to the Shriners.\u201d
\nWilliams mother said no.<\/p>\n

Instead she focused on making Williams strong. She enrolled him into public school and let him live as normal a life as possible. That meant being an adolescent boy and growing up in the 60\u2019s in California. <\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until that senior year of college that Williams started using a wheelchair, and through a group of friends, was invited to play wheelchair basketball. But Williams, having never been near other disabled individuals, declined. <\/p>\n

Eventually Williams came around and accepted the proposal, his passion growing each and every time he rolled on to that court. \u201cFrom the first time, I got on to the floor I loved it,\u201d said Williams. <\/p>\n

Williams kept on rolling. Eventually finding himself competing at the Paralympic Games in Canada. \u201cIn 1976, I was selected for the Paralympic team for track and field, no basketball,\u201d said Williams. \u201cI held three World Records in the 100m, 200m and 400m.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Williams quit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was a little bit discouraged by the organization of the whole [Paralympic Games],\u201d recalled Williams. \u201cIt seemed like we were just there to please the able-bodied people.\u201d <\/p>\n

Twelve years later and Williams stance against the Paralympic Games softened. He was called upon again to compete for his country, only this time it would be the sport that he was introduced to by his old group of friends at San Jose State University. <\/p>\n

So, Williams focus again shifted towards basketball. After making it through the first initial try-out that featured over 80 participants, Williams came out ranked number one. From there he proceeded to the official 12-man roster, never looking back. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was surprised when I heard my name called, that I made the team,\u201d said Williams. \u201cIt\u2019s an experience that\u2019ll never forget.\u201d
\nAnd that experience in 1988 not only saw Williams and his teammates win gold, but the U.S. women\u2019s team won as well. A feat that hadn\u2019t been accomplished again until last year\u2019s Paralympic games in Spain. <\/p>\n

And that\u2019s what keeps Williams in the game, this time as a coach. He watched his team in Friday night\u2019s gold medal match. As the last shot bounced off the rim and the final buzzer rang throughout the United Center, celebration ensued. <\/p>\n

William\u2019s Team Army defeated Team Navy 56-55, in a heated affair.<\/p>\n

Not only did these games provide the opportunity to grow and succeed for each and every one of his players, but they also provided something much more simplistic. They give those who served and continue to serve our country, the opportunity to simply compete.<\/p>\n

Over that span of 29 years the sport of wheelchair basketball has seen an exponential growth. With the introduction of the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) in 1949 and the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation in 1993, the game is constantly reaching new heights, very much like the Warrior Games accomplished here in Chicago. <\/p>\n

These games provided the stage for our wounded and ill service members to showcase their dedication, resiliency and talents, leaving them with memories and friendships that could last a lifetime. <\/p>\n

But Coach Rod Williams simply wishes for something more straightforward. <\/p>\n

\u201cI would like for them to be able to go and call upon this positive experience and adapt that to their own situation,\u201d said Williams. \u201cNo matter what life does to you, if you keep fighting you can overcome those obstacles.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sye Bennefield As the athletes went down the line, both greeting and congratulating each other, Army Head Coach Rod Williams, simply watched. Chicago played host to the Department of Defense (DoD) Warrior Games on June 30 \u2013 July 8. 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