Sports
Mahtomedi Skier ‘Honored’ To Represent US At 2022 Paralympics
Mahtomedi High School senior Max Nelson, who turned 18 at the 2022 Winter Paralympics in Beijing, was the youngest skier on the U.S. team.
MAHTOMEDI, MN — After capping his debut Paralympics with his best finish of the competition, Mahtomedi High School’s Max Nelson said he was “honored … to race for Team USA” in Beijing.
Nelson ended the 2022 Winter Paralympics with a ninth-place finish in a cross-country skiing relay, a 13th-place finish in a middle-distance cross-country race, and a 14th-place finish in a cross-country sprint.
“It was pretty crazy at the start trying to fight off a couple skiers for my spot,” Nelson told Team USA’s website after the relay race. “But I’m just honored to be here and race for Team USA. It was a great day.”
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He raced in the relay’s first leg along with his guide, Simi Hamilton. Drew Shea, Kendall Gretsch and Ruslan Reiter completed the relay team that finished ninth.
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Nelson, who celebrated his 18th birthday during the Paralympics, was the youngest member of the U.S. Para Nordic skiing team in Beijing. He was selected for the team after showing “the potential to be a rising star for U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing,” Team USA said.
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He won the Metro East Conference individual championship in 2021, becoming the first-ever visually impaired Minnesota skier to win a conference title. He also competed in two World Cup competitions in 2021.
Nelson was left with limited vision in his right eye after undergoing more than 10 surgeries for a congenital retina disease, according to his profile on the Team USA website. He also had retina detachments in both eyes when he was 2, his profile states.
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Nelson was one of five Paralympians from Minnesota, alongside wheelchair curler Batoyun "Oyuna" Uranchimeg, of Burnsville; skiers Sydney Peterson, of Lake Elmo, and Aaron Pike, of Grand Rapids; and snowboarder Mike Schultz, of St. Cloud.
Peterson won three medals at the 2022 Winter Paralympics, bringing home one of each color.
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