Marine veteran Jataya Taylor has emerged as one of the nation’s top athletes in wheelchair fencing, just two years after she took a stab at the sport at a friend’s suggestion. (USA Fencing)
WASHINGTON – Jataya “Jay” Taylor was forced to abandon her dream of a military career just three years after joining the Marine Corps, when the usual bumps, sprains and other scrapes from training did not heal normally but grew worse.
Medically retired in 2008, Taylor underwent extensive tests that revealed she has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a rare condition that weakens the cartilage and other tissues supporting and protecting the skin, bones and other organs. There is no cure.
“I watched my life plans and career go down the drain when I was 21,” said Taylor, a former private first class who soon had to wear leg braces just to stand up and walk. “The collagen in my body is defective -- like an old rubber band. It can snap or not heal correctly.”
Yet Taylor said she soon learned to push beyond the limitations of a debilitating medical condition in ways that amazed her coaches and colleagues.
In 2024, she has emerged as one of the nation’s top athletes in wheelchair fencing, just two years after she took a stab at the sport at a friend’s suggestion.
In September, she was among three women to represent Team USA in wheelchair fencing at the Paralympics in Paris. She relies on the Department of Veterans Affairs’ adaptive sports program, which funds recreational and athletic programs for disabled athletes of all skill levels.
The VA program has contributed more than $100 million in the past decade to fund sporting events and equipment for athletes with disabilities, including $16 million in grants this month to fund community nonprofits that work with para-athletes.
Adaptive sports are modified athletics that enable people with disabilities to participate in rigorous events that otherwise would be denied to them.
“Being introduced to the VA’s recreational therapy programs changed everything for me,” said Taylor, 38, of Colorado. “I was angry at my situation and the work it took just to get the right medical care. Adaptive sports let me find a new vocation, really a new life.”
Marine veteran Jataya Taylor, on the right, regularly competes in wheelchair fencing using a modified wheelchair that she obtained through a grant program by the Department of Veterans Affairs that provides adaptive equipment for veterans with disabilities. ( Jataya Taylor)
In July 2005, Taylor joined the Marines fresh out of high school with plans to make military service her career. She left her parents’ home in Titusville, Fla., for basic training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C.
But Taylor said she dislocated her right shoulder while training with pugil sticks, which are used to teach bayonet techniques. It was the first of many injuries that did not fully heal, she said.
Taylor went on to Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune, N.C., in 2006 to train as military police officer, where she suffered a torn ligament in her knee. This injury was much worse.
“I blew out my knee within weeks of arriving,” she said.
Taylor was sent home on temporary medical leave and placed on less-than-full-duty status. But a series of medical exams showed she was not recovering as expected.
Taylor received written notice of her medical discharge in 2008, even as she continued to believe she would be able to re-enlist, she said.
Within a year, Taylor received a positive diagnosis for Ehlers-Danlos syndrome as her condition deteriorated, especially problems with her left leg. She underwent a series of operations to manage her injuries. There was no permanent fix.
“The lower part of my leg shimmied at the joint and moved independently from the rest of my leg. I had no control over it,” she said.
Taylor came up with a solution that her medical team questioned at first but that eventually enabled her to return to an active life and compete in sports.
In 2015, Taylor asked her doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., to amputate her lower left leg, which had quit functioning, leading to more falls, injuries and setbacks. They agreed two years later after the surgery to remove a bone wedge and insert a plate to steady her lower leg failed to fix the problem.
Free from the unstable leg, Taylor started competing in what is known as adaptive sports or para-sports sponsored by the VA. She used hand pedals to bike, a blade to run and a sled to ice skate.
Taylor admits to a stubbornness about giving up athletics or giving in to her medical problems.
“I cannot think of a sport that I am not willing to try,” said Taylor, who hand-biked across five countries in Africa with her hand cycle in 2023. The bike tour took 2 1/2 months.
She also has competed in modified snowboarding, rock climbing, swimming, wheelchair basketball, para-track and field, and dragon boat racing, among other events.
“Jay has a great deal of fight and never quits as one would expect from a Marine. That fight and passion combined with the techniques are what makes her a standout athlete,” said Scott Rodgers, a friend who competes with Taylor in wheelchair fencing, a sport she has quickly dominated in the United States.
No one is more surprised by the achievements than Taylor.
“My first thought was, are they really going to trust me with a sword? I had only seen fencing on TV and in the movies,” said Taylor, who likens competitive wheelchair fencing to a “knife fight in a phone booth.”
She was able to obtain a modified wheelchair for fencing competitions with assistance from the VA. The VA also provides her with an athlete’s stipend to participate in competitions.
With wheelchair fencing, the chairs are locked down and stationary, serving as platforms during competition.
“You can move your body away from an opponent while seated in the wheelchair. But you rely on your own wits, strength and athleticism to prevail,” Taylor said.
Her military background taught her how to train, problem solve and know when to attack and defend, said Nathan Anderson, head coach of the Denver Fencing Center and board chairman of the Denver Fencing Foundation.
“Taylor’s self-discipline combined with a belief that she can perform what others think is impossible allows her to be this great athlete,” he said.
Yet as much as she tries to push through the pain, Taylor still experiences frequent minor injuries that can do major damage to her body.
She has had more than 20 surgeries to manage her condition and will soon need an operation to repair a joint in her left shoulder.
But Taylor also is chasing new opportunities. She serves as program manager at the Denver Fencing Foundation.
She recently started teaching fencing as a certified coach to students of all ages. Her role includes introducing fencing to veterans.
“You never know where life will lead you,” Taylor said. “A lesson I try to pass on to my students is to understand that at any point something bad can happen but also to realize that a better opportunity often is just around the corner.”
