Skip to main content

For One Athlete, There’s No Obstacle Too Big for Love

Share This article

In a moving moment caught on camera, former Olympian high jumper Jamie Nieto walked down the aisle with his bride Shevon Stoddart on their wedding day.

Nieto promised Stoddart he would do so.

And he kept his apparently simple promise, despite some pretty big difficulties.

Shevon Stoddart, 34, shared a photo the LA Times took of the event.

The two met at a commercial audition in 2010. They initially kept in touch via social media before they started going out.  

In 2016, the 40-year-old two-time Olympian lost feeling in his hands and feet, and was paralyzed in part after injuring himself. While doing a back flip - a routine exercise – he slipped on turf and landed on his head and neck.

But he says it’s what made him decide to pursue Stoddart further.

"We were talking about getting married before the accident, and when I had the accident it was clear to me, ‘What are we waiting on?’ You never know — you could be gone tomorrow,” said Nieto. “I asked her if she was ready to get married now or wait until I got better.”

With support from Stoddart – a Jamaican hurdler herself - and a good amount of willpower, he persevered, and worked his way back towards walking.

“Your only limitations are what you believe them to be. Keep fighting!” he captioned a picture he posted on Instagram before the wedding.

Nieto is eager to be fully recovered.

“I feel like it’s not fast enough,” said Nieto. “I want to be better tomorrow. I’m built for speed, not for going slow. But I’m working on being the best walker I can be.”

He told the Associated Press, “there was never a doubt,” in his hopes for a complete recovery, despite doctors who were unsure he would walk after the accident.

He fulfilled his promise at the ceremony earlier this month at Christ Temple Apostolic Church in San Diego, California.

Shevon, 34, shared a photo the LA Times took of the event.

Nieto is eager to be fully recovered.

I feel like it’s not fast enough,” said Nieto according to Today.“I want to be better tomorrow. I’m built for speed, not for going slow. But I’m working on being the best walker I can be.”

He told the Associated Press, “there was never a doubt,” in his hopes for a complete recovery, despite doctors who were unsure he would walk after the accident.

Share This article

About The Author

CBN News