By Christopher Tremblay, Staff Sports Writer

At the young age of five, Jie Doyon became a bilateral amputee, having both his legs removed above the knee. While dealing with the loss, recovery, and finding a purpose are common amongst double amputees, many find strength in sports, community, and inspiring others. Doyon did just that by participating in sled hockey, wheelchair basketball, track, and karate. 

“I had mixed feelings at first,” his mother Heather Doyon said. “But it was good for him overall as he no longer had the nerve pain, and he felt so much better without that pain. Prior to the surgery, he couldn’t work as he couldn’t put any pressure on his legs.”

Following the taking of his legs, Doyon had to deal with the other children saying terrible things about him, but over the years, it has gotten better, and those kids are realizing who Doyon is and what he is about. Despite all the original criticism, Doyon noted that he was okay with it and didn’t let it bother him.

After becoming involved in all the adapted sports, which are different from the Special Olympics in the fact that they are fully competitive sports like the Paralympics,  he came across wrestling by mistake. 

“Coming out of after-care last year, he saw the high school kids wrestling in the gym and became interested and immediately told me that he wanted to try it,” his mother said. “Jei wants to try everything and loves to compete. When the coach heard us talking, he came over to us and gave me Kyle (Grady’s) contact information.”

Grady is a Principal in the Nashoba Regional School District, but he is also the Director of the Ashland Jr. Clockers Wrestling Program, where the young Doyon would begin his wrestling journey.

“As a mother, I am always nervous when he wants to try something new, but I have to let him go and figure it out for himself,” Heather said. “I don’t want to be the one who stands in his way.”

Jie was glad his mother gave him the opportunity.

“When I saw them in the gym, I was wondering what it was all about,” he said. “I was really interested in doing a sport in Ashland, and it was not going to be a problem for me to try, it is a little tricky though, being only in my second year.”

According to his mother, Jie adapts well, jumped right in on day one, and has been picking up the sport. His Coaches are not worried about him winning; they want him to learn by losing and focus on getting better. 

“He is still trying to figure out the moves, but he is definitely one who is up for a challenge,” his mother said. “For the most part, he knows it’s going to be a learning curve, especially since this is his first sport dealing with able-bodied participants. He’s a perfectionist.”

While only in his second year with the Junior Clockers, the coaching staff had never really encountered anyone like Jie and were unsure where to go next with his training.

“He has fully embraced the sport of wrestling with tremendous enthusiasm,” Grady said. “The coaching staff has been inspired by his dedication, but we're pretty much exhausted our thoughts on how to best support his development as a wrestler and athlete.”

With that thought in mind, Grady and the Junior Clockers contacted Rohan Murphy, a double-leg amputee who wrestled growing up in New Jersey and then continued the sport as a walk-on at Penn State, where he wrestled for three years for the Nittany Lions. Murphy is one of East Islip, NJ’s most decorated wrestlers, being named a three-time all-league and two-time county wrestler. 

Originally, Murphy began participating in Paralympic weightlifting at Penn State. In 2006, at the IPC World Powerlifting Championship in Busan, South Korea, he lifted 281.1 pounds, breaking the previous Paralympic record of 270 pounds, which he had set earlier in the year. Nowadays, Murphy is a motivational speaker, and Grady got him to come talk to Ashland’s Junior Clocker Wrestlers. 

“I wanted him to talk to our wrestling room, but more importantly giving Jie someone to serve as a role model,” Grady said. “He showed the staff and wrestlers how to take guys down without footwork and how having no legs can benefit you on the mat.”

Being able to meet someone much like himself, Doyon was beyond ecstatic.

“I was really excited to meet him,” Jie said. “He got on the mat and taught me some moves.”

Although only in his second year in the sport, the young wrestler is looking to get better and attend some wrestling camps in the near future, where he can hopefully figure out how to pin an opponent and come off the mat with a win.

His overall dream is to not only continue to improve his wrestling skills but would also like to become a Paralympic sled hockey player for Team USA. Being an incredibly determined individual, Jie Doyon should one day accomplish his dream.