After the phenomenal Olympic Winter Games in February comes the Paralympic Winter Games throughout March. From the 4th to the 13th, over 700 disabled athletes will be competing. From Alpine skiing to snowboarding, many athletes will be making their Olympics debut in Beijing this year.
The Team USA wheelchair curling team in particular has many first-timers, as well as some decorated competitors. One such competitor is Batoyun "Oyuna" Uranchimeg, the lead curler of the national wheelchair team, administrative assistant for University of St. Thomas, and mother of two.
Oyuna and her team came fourth in the 2021 World Wheelchair Curling Championship, securing their spot in Beijing 2022. The team also won bronze back in 2008, coincidentally one of the most important years of Oyuna’s life. But first, let’s go back further …
An accident took eight years of her son’s childhood.
As the world ushered in the new millennium, Oyuna was in a serious car crash that severed a nerve in her spine, leading to her paralysis from the waist down. In an interview with TeamUsa.org, the Paralympian states that she doesn’t look back in anger.
"I have one hundred percent acceptance of the things that happened to me," she said. "I believe that we all have a destiny. You can't travel on two different paths at the same time. So whatever path you choose — or whatever path is given to you — you have to accept that and make the best of it."
That being said, since Oyuna wasn’t able to return to her home country of Mongolia during her recovery, she and her son were separated for most of his childhood.
Due to visa problems and other issues, it took eight years for him to be able to move to Minnesota with her.
“I didn’t get to see him on his first day of school," she explained. "I couldn’t be there on so many birthdays, New Year, and holidays. He had never been separated from me, not even for a week, before I left. And then I was gone and couldn’t come back.”
That’s time you can’t get back, and it just goes to show how badly we need to reform and streamline immigration laws.
We need more resources, clearer road maps, and more empathy for those who simply want to start a new life. It’s one thing to be unable to return home after a near-fatal accident, but to be separated from your child at the same time? Devastating.
Balancing being separated from her son, finding work, and recovery must have taken a lot of emotional and physical strength. Luckily, by 2008, those worries would be sorted.
A happy new beginning ...
While her future team was winning bronze, she was winning her family back. By 2008, Oyuna’s son was finally able to make the trip to the US. Since her son and her niece had essentially grown up as siblings, Oyuna decided to adopt her and bring both of them to Minnesota.
Despite the difficult separation, Oyuna is thankful for where her situation ended up. In her interview with Team USA, she stated: "If I weren't injured, I wouldn't have gotten to stay in this country and become a citizen of this beautiful place that I now call my country. And I wouldn't have become a Paralympian.”
So there’s always a silver lining, and Oyuna very much ended up where she needed to be. Both in terms of gaining a daughter and her curling career.
Fast-forward to 2016, and Oyuna discovered the sport of wheelchair curling.
Coached by Rusty Schieber, Oyuna is now the lead curler, and they plan to win a medal in Beijing 2022.
“As somebody who never really was involved in sports as much, I grew up dreaming about being in the Olympics or the Paralympics,” Oyuna told Good Sport, “Rusty specifically said that if I am interested in this sport, and I keep at it, that there is actually a very good chance I could go to the 2022 Paralympics, and that kind of sold me right then and there.”
And she did!
This year, she and her team are competing in over 25 matches, starting on Saturday, March 5, with round robin competing against Slovakia. You can view the games via NBCOlympics.com, Apple TV, Roku, and more. For live coverage of the opening and closing ceremonies, visit Peacock.
Oyuna is a testament to the power of human strength, feminine determination, and the love of motherhood. Despite adversity and thanks to fate, she is flourishing as a Paralympian and in her family life. There’s no doubt that she’ll have a fantastic time in Beijing 2022.
