Fort Eustis soldier wins silver in first Warrior Games

Army Sgt. Daniel Lopez came home to Williamsburg with a medal from the Warrior Games and the desire to train harder with the hopes of returning.

Last week, he participated in the games where 200 wounded, injured and ill service members from all branches of the military competed in seven sports in Colorado Springs, Colo. The 31-year-old is assigned to the Warrior Transition Unit at Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

Lopez, whose right leg was amputated, participated in four events: 50-meter backstroke and relay swim, sitting volleyball and a 10K bike ride. He came home with a silver medal in sitting volleyball.

"I never played sitting volleyball before," he said Monday. "We had one hour to practice before our first game."

He also made it to the swimming finals, but said there were competitive swimmers who swept the finals. And he was halfway through a six-mile handcycle race when his borrowed bike broke. He said volunteers went to get him tools, because he wouldn't give up.

"I was going to finish," he said, "whether I had to walk the bike."

He fixed the bike and finished, but he was stuck in one gear. At the finish line, his teammates came out and pushed him.

In the end, it was the other athletes that really made his experience memorable.

"The stories alone of what people overcame," he said. "Just a few months ago you were fighting for your life."

He said there were never any complaints of pain, and that was inspiring.

"If he could do it, I could do it," he said.