Nobody believed in me. That was their first mistake. Knowing of my Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI), crippled foot, and being blind in one eye, they thought I had no serious chance of winning or even being able to seriously compete in pickleball. “Why should you even try to play in the Maryland Senior Olympics?” they would ask.

There was only one answer I would give them. “Simple. I refuse to let my limitations stop me from trying to achieve what you would call impossible.”

Yes, I had limitations, and they were serious. The CVI would let blood pool in my left leg, making it ache or on occasion, severe pain, leaving me unable to bear weight on it.

In my twenties, I crushed my left heel, and had it fused to my ankle, leaving me with a permanent limp.

The blindness in my right eye was due to an infection had in it as a child. For most of my life, I had to learn how to compute the trajectory and position of any object coming towards me using one eye and split-second calculations subconsciously. If one watched me play pickleball without knowledge of my blindness, they would never have noticed. Still, there were certain trajectories I couldn’t deciphered, but I never let anyone know what those paths were. They were my kryptonite and thus, my precious secrets. As for the 2026 Maryland Senior Olympics, ready or not, here I come.

I signed up for three different pickleball events. Singles, Men’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. Singles came first.

I knew this would be the hardest for me. I had to cover the whole court and my CVI and crippled foot would hinder me. I played four games, and though I gave it my best shot, I was defeated in each of those games. In the end, it didn’t matter to me. I did my best, but my lack of speed on the court was too much for me to overcome. Still, I scored points against my opponents and made them work for each point they received. I have a two-word motto which I live by. “Never quit,” and I didn’t.

Two days later, I was at my next event. Men’s doubles. Rod was my partner, and we had only played twice together before that day. The first three matches were easy victories. Then came the fourth match. Reginald and Veron were our opponents and it turned out to be a massacre. We lost 15 to 5. Still, we made it to the gold and silver medal round, and of course, Reginald and Vernon were waiting for us. The games were played to 11, the best two out of three. It only took two games. We lost the first 11 to 6, and the second 11 to 5. Still, we brought home the silver.

Now, it was the final day of the tournament, mixed doubles. My partner was Vicki, and I have never talked nor played with her before. “This is going to be interesting,” I thought. During the first round, we had a bye, so we waited until the second round started. When we got up to play, we were playing against Gary and Monica. If we had played in the first round, we would have had ten minutes to warm up. But since we didn’t, we only had one minute to warm up. Gary and Monica defeated us 15 to 5.

We went on to win the other matches and made it to the bronze medal round, if we won, we would go to the gold and silver round. We won 15 to 7.

It was time to advance to the gold and silver round. Again, the matches were played to 11 points, the best two out of three, and waiting for us were Gary and Monica. But now, we were warmed up. The first game was hard and heavy, neither side easing up. In the end, Gary and Monica won 11 to 9. If wanted to win the gold, we would have to win the next two games.

Again, we played. Sweat was pouring off me, and I refused to give up. Through determination and pure grit, Vicki and I won 11 to 9. Still, it wasn’t over. We had one game left to decide who goes home with the gold.

And so, it began. In the beginning, Vicki and I were faltering, and we fell behind 10 to 4, and they needed only one more point to win. At that time, I called for a timeout. Vicki was frustrated and seemed ready to quit, but during that one-minute timeout, her head cooled and we returned to the game.

Point by point, we began to catch up. Whenever they served, we were able to stop them from scoring and narrowed their lead. 10 to 7, 10 to 8, 10 to 9, then 10 to 10. Miraculously, we caught up and tied them. Now we needed to beat them by two points. As our confidence built, their desperation grew. We pulled ahead 11 to 10. There was no thought of my disabilities. No pain, no blindness, only the desire to win. Then on our last serve, Gary lobbed the ball up in front of me, and before the ball went beyond my reach, I smashed it down on the court, next to his feet. 12 to 10. It was over.

After a six-point deficit, we came back to win the gold medal. The crowd was silent, for they were cheering for Gary and Monica. Then, a single person clapped and soon after, the rest joined in. Congratulations were given to us as well as Gary and Monica, for the motto of the Maryland Senior Olympics is, “To participate is to win”. Our games were the last ones for the pickleball event, and the final medals were awarded to us. Vicki and I are planning to go to the National Senior Olympic Games next year. Perhaps, I will write a story about it when it’s over. Like a said earlier, “Never quit.”