By Shannon Collins
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
MARINE CORPS BASE, QUANTICO, Va., June 26, 2015 – Retired
Air Force Master Sgt. Craig Zaleski didn’t earn a medal in the 2015 Department
of Defense Warrior Games here this week, but he said the adaptive sports
competition was an emotional and rewarding experience.
He competed in shot put and discus June 23, shot the recurve
bow June 22 and rode the upright bicycle June 21.
Zaleski went to his first camp in January, where he was
selected as an alternate before making the Air Force team.
“Just making the team was a tremendous feeling,” he said. “I
do hope to medal one day, but adaptive sports, they help with recovery. Instead
of calling myself a professional TV watcher, I can call myself a cyclist or an
archer.
“Every morning I wake up here, I get emotional and fired up
to be around other … athletes and to feel proud of myself for what I’ve
accomplished in my recovery so far,” he said. “I’ve made friends for life
here.”
Military Service
Zaleski deployed several times in his 21 years as an
aerospace group equipment technician. He said his hardest deployment came in
1996, to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.
On June 25, 1996, terrorists detonated a truck bomb
containing 3,000 to 8,000 pounds of TNT at Khobar Towers, which housed U.S. and
allied forces supporting the coalition air operation over Iraq, Operation
Southern Watch. Nineteen airmen died, and about 500 troops were wounded.
“It struck the corner of the building, and I was in the
middle,” he said. “I saw the aftermath. I saw this mushroom cloud of smoke. I
thought we were going to get attacked again.”
Illness
Years later, Zaleski was stationed with his family at Kadena
Air Base on the Japanese island of Okinawa when he began experiencing pressure
in his sinuses. He then failed the Air Force physical fitness test for the
first time in his career.
He went to the doctor for sinus medication, started training
for the makeup PT test and took leave to spend time with his family. He had a
seizure while on leave. At the hospital, his wife insisted the doctor perform
an MRI, and as they were driving home, the doctor called them and told them
they would be leaving within three days for Hawaii, because Zaleski had a brain
tumor.
“It was pretty traumatic, because the kids barely had a
chance to say goodbye to their friends, and we couldn’t pack up our household
goods,” he said. “Plus, I had a brain tumor the size of my fist.”
He spent 200 days in the hospital. Portions of the tumor had
to be left in place, because it went around his optic nerve, he said. He lost
his senses of smell and taste, but now has regained 50 percent of his sense of
taste. But the trauma of a tumor and recovery took its toll, and after 14 years
of marriage, the Zaleskis separated.
Positive Outlook
Zaleski said he’s happy they found the tumor in time, and he
keeps a positive outlook.
“I’m still recovering, and I want to be a good role model
for my kids,” he said. “I could’ve easily turned to drinking or other bad
habits, but I didn’t. It’s not worth it.”
Adaptive Sports
Adaptive sports have helped him maintain his athleticism,
Zaleski said. He was a high school athlete and played intramural softball in
the Air Force.
“I could be at work, but instead, I’m out riding a cycle or
shooting archery; there’s no comparison,” he said. “It’s very relaxing. I’m
getting a new recurve bow within the next month or so, and I’m going to start
competing a little bit more.”
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