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Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional snow showers overnight. Some mixed winter precipitation possible. Low 26F. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 60%. Snow accumulations less than one inch.
Updated: March 1, 2022 @ 5:14 pm
Seventeen year old Max Nelson is on his way to Beijing to compete in the Paralympics. Nelson will go for gold on the U.S. Nordic team early this March.
Nelson is the youngest team member on the U.S. Nordic Team.
Seventeen year old Max Nelson is on his way to Beijing to compete in the Paralympics. Nelson will go for gold on the U.S. Nordic team early this March.
Nelson is the youngest team member on the U.S. Nordic Team.
For the last five years, a 2022 Beijing Paralympic Games poster has been hanging in Max Nelson’s bedroom. The poster was a gift from his coach, David Bridges, and represented a long-term goal for Nelson. Today, the Mahtomedi high school senior is a member of Team USA.
Nelson remembers getting the life-changing call Jan. 31. For a minute he thought it was some kind of joke.
“I was just like, I’m going somewhere big and what a great opportunity to represent the USA to the best of my ability,” said Nelson.
At just 17, Nelson will be the youngest team member of the U.S. Nordic Team for this year’s Paralympics.
Nelson, who is legally blind, was diagnosed with an eye disease when he was just a toddler.
“When I was about two years old, I was diagnosed with an eye disease that I don’t even know how to pronounce. I’m not going to even try to pronounce it,” laughed Nelson.
Ever since, Nelson has undergone a number of eye surgeries, including one two years ago that briefly interrupted his Nordic skiing season, according to Bridges.
But Nelson’s passion for skiing has never stopped. When Nelson was 6 years old, his dad signed him up for Nordic skiing. He was hooked. Once Nelson got to high school, he joined the Mahtomedi Nordic ski team, which is where he met Bridges.
“I remember when I first found out we would get a visually impaired skier on the team,” Bridges said. “I had heard that Max had been running cross-county and wasn’t guided well enough that he ended up running into something and broke his collarbone. I was very cautious, because I wanted to be careful with him.”
To keep Nelson safe during training sessions and meets, a guide wearing bright colors skis ahead of Nelson and uses a microphone and speaker on their back to give Nelson adequate notice about any obstacles on the course. Nelson also wears a skiing bib to let other competitors know that he might not see another competitor if they get too close.
“I’ve been working with Max, and he has a lot of athletic potential,” Bridges said. “Every year he wins the award for the hardest worker on the team. After working with Max for a bit, I thought, ‘Wow, this kid could really go somewhere.’”
That’s when Bridges got the idea to set Nelson’s goals on Team USA. Nelson had already shown promise when he competed in World Cups in Slovenia and Canmore, placing 14th in Canmore in a men’s visually impaired Nordic race.
Now that his next stop is Beijing, Nelson says his main goal is to try his best.
Nelson will travel to China Feb. 26 along with Team USA, but since COVID-19 is still hanging around this year’s Paralympic Games, there will be no spectators for the events. Nelson says even his parents can’t join him.
His first race will be a sprint qualifier March 9, followed by a 10K Classic March 12. Nelson also has a chance of being put in a relay March 13.
“I’m hoping I can just race well and be proud of myself on how I do over there. It’s a big honor to represent the country where you’re born and raised,” said Nelson.
At 17, Nelson is only at the beginning of his Nordic career. According to Bridges, Nordic skiers peak in their 30s and even into their 40s. In the next few years, Nelson’s dream is to keep working hard to get to future World Cups and Paralympic races.
“I’m planning on when he gets back to give him a new poster for the 2026 Milan Italy games to add to his collection,” said Bridges.
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