The Olympic Games is an exciting time for both the participating athletes and their families—including, for some, the parents who adopted them.
One adopted athlete was Paraguay’s sole participant in their first-ever Winter Games in 2014. American slope skier Julia Marino, was born in Paraguay and then adopted a few months later by a family in Massachusetts. Though Julia has never known anything about her birthparents because her adoption was closed, her adoptive parents ensured that she and her brother, Mark, also adopted from Paraguay, were aware of their South American roots and God’s role in finding them a forever home. Sadly, Julia’s father, who was instrumental in her athletic pursuits, passed away suddenly in 2007, but her mother and brother remain her biggest fans. During the long approval process for Julia to represent Paraguay, the Olympic Committee was concerned someone might claim to be her birthparent. Julia said, however, that given the chance, she would like to thank her birthparents for giving her this opportunity. After all, she shared, “They could have easily kept me in Paraguay, but they let me grow up in the United States and learn to ski. I hope they'd be proud.”1
Adopted children have also realized the Olympic dream in the past. Scott Hamilton, 1984’s Gold Medal winner in men’s figure skating, was adopted by a loving family in Ohio. When Scott was just a toddler, he stopped growing. Hampered in part because his parents had no medical history for their adopted son, Scott spent years in and out of hospitals as the family tried to determine the cause of his condition. In the end, however, his parents’ support of his skating career made a huge difference in his life. In fact, his illness disappeared, and the rest is Olympic history.2
The Olympic Games do not have the corner on achievements by some of America’s most athletic adopted children. Two-time Olympian shot putter Reese Hoffa was adopted at the age of 4 after a devastating fire that, in part, led to his teenage mother’s difficult decision to place both of her sons in an orphanage. His adopted family loved him unconditionally through the years as he developed into a world-class athlete. Later, as an adult, Reese reconnected with his birthmother and brother. Today he is a public advocate for adoption.3
These three athletes had birthparents who made the difficult decision to allow others to care for their children when they could not. Their stories inspire us to honor the Olympic achievements of all the adopted athletes from around the world, past and present. But we honor as well their birthparents and adoptive parents, who ensured they would have the love and support every child—including budding athletes with Olympic dreams—needs.
1. http://xgames.espn.go.com/skiing/article/10152962/slopestyle-skier-julia-marino-become-paraguay-first-winter-olympic-athlete
2. http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/ham0int-1
3. http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/story/Reese-Hoffa-long-journey-from-orphanage-to-Olympics-111611
