US Olympic pair figure skater Alexa Scimeca Knierim and her husband and partner, Chris Knierim, say their Christian faith gave them the strength to battle through a life-threatening illness to compete in the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea.
26-year-old Alexa Knierim, who was diagnosed with a serious gastrointestinal condition in 2016 that required three surgeries, told reporters her faith is the reason she was able to get back on the ice.
Last week, the Knierims became the first married couple to compete in the Winter Olympics since Americans Jenni Meno and Todd Sand competed in the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, Japan.
However, the accomplishment seemed impossible just two years ago.
Alexa Knierim got sick right before the last competition of the 2015-2016 season. She began to vomit uncontrollably for hours at a time. The illness lasted months and forced the couple to withdraw from the competition.
Alexa explained all she could do was surrender her situation to God.
She said, “I stopped worrying and stopped trying to control life because I couldn’t. So I finally just threw my hands up and said like, ‘You lead the way,’ and it’s my testimony and I stay true to it.”
“And even here at the Games, it’s no longer about me,” she added. “I have fans out there who know that I am a true believer in the Lord and I’m trying my best to shine His light and let people know that it’s okay to promote Him and do things for Him, because in the Christian life that’s kind of what we’re supposed to.”