Edwards finds calling in sitting volleyball

Jun. 12—Tia Edwards wanted nothing to do with sitting volleyball.

The Claremore-born athlete didn't know much about parasports, but she certainly didn't consider herself disabled or handicapped by her congenital birth defect. She was born without a left hand.

Edwards proved as much throughout her young career, playing traditional volleyball for her school team in Skiatook as well as a competitive league squad.

So when she was approached in 2008 at the age of 14 and asked to attend a Team USA sitting volleyball camp after a tournament at the Tulsa Convention Center, she was understandably reluctant.

"They were like, 'Oh my gosh, you're missing a limb; come talk to us,'" Edwards said of the encounter. "And I was like, 'Absolutely not. I am not disabled; I am not playing.' I wanted nothing to do with it. They just saw I was missing my hand and thought I'd be great. But I was like, 'I am not disabled. I am perfectly fine playing while standing, why would I need to play sitting?'"

Edwards remained firm on her stance for some time, but she eventually relented thanks to the coaxing skills of her grandmother, who lives in Owasso.

However, the first trip to the Edmond training center wasn't an enjoyable experience.

Not only did she feel out of place because her supposed impairment appeared less severe than the other players, but she also found it difficult to transition from standing to sitting.

According to the Team USA website, "paralympic volleyball follows the same rules as its nondisabled counterpart with a few modifications to accommodate the various disabilities. In sitting volleyball, the net is about 3.5-feet high, and the court is 10x6 meters with a 2-meter attack line. Players are allowed to block serves, but one "cheek" must be in contact with the floor whenever they make contact with the ball."

"I was like, 'I am nothing like any of them. They're all missing all their legs, and I have my legs. I don't need to play on this team,'" Edwards said. "I tried it, and I hated it. I had blisters all over my hands, my legs were sore and I was like, 'I'm not doing this.'

"It is very difficult to move and learn the movements at first. When you first come from standing to sitting and start to move, you want to get on your knees, but that's not legal."

Despite facing the obstacle of learning a different version of the sport she loved, something kept her coming back.

Then, in 2014 — one year after graduating from Skiatook High School — she moved to Edmond to continue her training.

That decision set her on a path to the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where Team USA captured the gold medal.

China defeated Edwards and the Americans in five sets during pool play, but Team USA avenged that loss in the gold medal match with a 3-0 sweep of the powerhouse. The victory came only a few months after Team USA topped the Chinese for the 2016 World ParaVolley Intercontinental Cup championship.

Coming into the Games, China had won all three gold medals since the sport's incorporation in 2004.

"My whole body was just in shock," Edwards said. "I was like, 'We just won.' I just remember saying, 'Oh my God. Oh my God.' That's all I could say. I ran onto the court and hugged my libero, and I was like, 'Did we just win?' Everyone was crying, and emotions were on high.

"The medals are pretty heavy. I would say like 3 or 4 pounds. They are really heavy. My neck dropped when I put it on. I couldn't stop smiling."

Five years later, Edwards hopes to experience that same "neck-dropping" feeling once more.

The 2021 Paralympic Games are scheduled for Aug. 24-Sept. 5 in Tokyo, Japan, and the Team USA sitting volleyball squad is set to begin its journey to the "Land of the Rising Sun" on Aug. 15.

The event, originally scheduled for 2020, was postponed because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. That, of course, made training difficult for Edwards and her teammates.

"We were in Colorado at the beginning of March, and when we got back, it was COVID everything," Edwards said. "We were trying to figure out what we needed to do for training, and then they were talking about cancelling everything. And we were like, 'No, no, no. The Games are supposed to be this year.'"

Before the pandemic, Team USA closed 2019 with gold medals at the Parapan American Games and the World ParaVolley World Super 6.

With training facilities closed, Edwards returned to Skiatook and managed her time with at-home workouts. She could only do so much, though, and aside from occasionally using the wall as a ricochet, her volleyball touches were fairly limited for about five months.

Training restarted in the fall, and now Edwards looks to add a second Paralympic gold medal to her stash of accomplishments.

Team USA is the favorite going into the tournament, but regardless of the result, Edwards will continue relishing what might just be the best decision of her life.

The thing she once balked at has become her calling.

"I was totally against it, but now I love it," she said.