Spokane veteran wins four gold medals in National Wheelchair Games

Tina Tuell’s story is one of struggle, persistence and perseverance.

Tuell served as a religious program specialist in the U.S. Navy for a decade starting in 1992.

After being discharged from the Navy, she sustained a spinal cord injury from an accident involving a gunshot, which left her paralyzed from the waist-down. She suffered from depression in the years that followed.

“I was actually down in Texas from mid-December to mid-April this past season to help my mom with cancer, and we’d already lost my third dad,” Tuell said.

Despite the losses and setbacks, Tuell began a recovery from those darker parts of her life throughout the past year by moving back to Spokane and seeking recreational therapy.

It culminated in July with successes in the National Wheelchair Games.

“I know I needed to opt for a healthier lifestyle. It was way out of my comfort zone. I just can’t be sitting at home watching TV all the time,” she said. “I had a heart attack in August last year. I needed to choose a different lifestyle.”

So she moved back to Spokane in April and received life-changing help from her therapists and a spinal cord injury group.

“To be connected with so many helpful resources and people, it’s just been immeasurable,” Tuell said.

This July, the Department of Veterans Affairs and Paralyzed Veterans of America hosted the 42nd National Wheelchair Games, the world’s largest annual wheelchair sports event solely for military veterans.

Tuell learned about the event from her therapy group in November and began practicing for the games after she moved back to Spokane.

She competed for the first time last month, winning four first-place medals in Adaptive Fitness, Bowling, Motor Rally and Motor Slalom.

The National Wheelchair Games are a self-described “sports and rehabilitation event” hosted by the VA and Paralyzed Veterans of America every year, since 1981. The mission of the event is to foster respect and grant opportunities for disabled veterans.

Tuell described her feelings after winning the competitions: “I was very surprised and shocked, then elated.”

She has begun training for the games hosted in New Orleans next year, but isn’t sure what to choose. Her eyes are on powerlifting or disc golf.

“It’s a whole brand new world that’s opened up,” Tuell said. “It’s like going to college, what do you want to be when you grow up?” Tuell said.

She feels as if the games have established a new youthful-like chapter in her life. She loves the sense of community and reunion the event brings veterans.

“Just to have that camaraderie, looking forward to like that great big family reunion with other veterans is exhilarating and it’s exciting,” Tuell said.

Tuell encourages other disabled veterans to enter the games next year.

“There’s nothing like having a bunch of veterans together that are all in wheelchairs, that are competing in sports. The atmosphere is very energetic, very encouraging, very inspiring,” Tuell said. “You’re cheering on your teammates whether they’re on your team or not.”

Tuell has advice for veterans who might be in a similar position.

“Just get out of your own way, you don’t have to stay in your mindset,” Tuell said. “There’s modifications to help you achieve what you don’t think you might wanna do.”