Yes!
My original name
was Zion Zachariah Daniels.
I don't know exactly what Zion means,
but I know it's a mountain
that's mentioned in the Bible.
A huge one, too.
So I figure it means,
like, sturdy and strong.
I was born like this.
I haven't really known
much of anything else.
This is normal to me.
Zion was 16 years old when I adopted him.
He just didn't have anybody.
When I was born,
my mother gave me up for adoption.
I haven't met my parents,
but I really don't want to.
I lived in about seven or eight
foster homes.
I got starved and beaten a lot.
But I'm not gonna lie,
I wasn't a good kid.
Being through all that, I kind of had
a bad attitude towards a lot of things.
Wrestling's the oldest sport
known to man.
It's been mentioned in the Bible twice.
It's basically two human beings
imposing their will on one another.
Move!
My name is Coach Donahue.
I've been coaching wrestling for 25 years.
The first time I ever saw Zion
was when he was walking
through the hallways with prosthetic legs.
The prosthetics were cutting
into his feet, and he was being gashed.
He was forced to wear them.
I felt like people were trying
to make me look like everybody else
when I wanted to look like myself.
Like why take away me being on the ground
where I'm used to something
and putting me up higher
where I don't like it?
The fact that I can just get up and do
everything a lot of people think I can't,
that made me angry.
I just wanted to be myself.
Yes, head control. Let's go!
When Zion came into the
wrestling room, his prosthetics came off.
We only have our arms
we have to wrestle and walk with,
so we have to be very careful,
do you understand?
Yeah.
-Ready to rock and roll?
-Yeah.
Let's go!
Get to your stations! Let's go!
I want you moving.
Zion, let's go!
We made a technique
around his body style and his abilities.
When he was wrestling,
he kind of forgot about a lot
of the things he had to deal with.
Go as hard as you can
for as long as you can.
People would discriminate against him,
other teams would look at him
and make comments to other wrestlers.
Let's go, Zion!
Come on, Zion!
Hand control.
Move. Pace.
He very easily could have just
thrown it all in and been unsuccessful.
He could have been someone
that got into trouble
because he had no family.
He had no stability in his life.
That was a recipe for disaster.
I just decided I don't wanna feel
like I'm weak or anything like that.
Come on! Come on, let's go!
Get in there!
I wanna see that peak. Let's go.
Get in there!
Peterson, grab the wrist! Grab the wrist!
Lean back! Lean back! Lean back!
Nice job, Zion.
Nice job.
Excellent.
I was holding myself back
from a lot of different things.
Then I started loosening up.
I started to recognize I can do something.
Come senior year, I beat some
of the best guys in the state of Ohio.
As he became more and more
successful, he became embraced.
I used to not talk to anybody
or anything like that.
But then, like, after getting good,
it just gave me a lot of confidence
with everything.
Stop taking pictures of us.
Zion ended up in the match
to go to state,
so if he wins he goes,
if he loses he does not.
He went into sudden death overtime
and sudden victory.
You couldn't get any closer from going
to the state tournament than Zion got.
I mean, it was kind of like holding on
by a finger, that's how close it was.
Well, Jack Gorman ended up
holding Zion down at the end.
Zion was so upset,
he put his head down on the mat.
There was a standing ovation
that was going on because of Zion.
He was crying so hard,
he didn't even know.
So I picked him up on my shoulder.
And I know I'm getting emotional, but...
it's been eight years
that I've been with Zion,
and it was kind of, like...
the one thing that he got.
You know, he worked so hard
and he thought he failed,
but he was one of the biggest successes
that I've ever had, was Zion.
That was at graduation.
He's like a dad figure to me.
This is our whole line-up.
This team was dubbed the best team
that Massillon's seen since 1976.
This was my homecoming date.
I asked her to homecoming with a sign.
It was really corny, but it worked.
That was really smart on my part.
Now she just thinks I'm annoying but cool.
Father God,
I ask that you just remind him
that he is fearfully made in spite
of what his physical being may be.
Continue to quiet the voices
that may lie to him
and tell him about what he can't do.
Let him be a light in a dark place.
Father God, you know what it is
that we stand in need of in this household
as far as his college and for his future.
I just ask that you bind your will
to whatever it is,
the purpose that you have for him.
In Jesus's name, amen.
Let's go!
Zion!
Zion!
Zion!
I just got to live it day by day.
I can't be looking too far in the past
or I'll mess up now.
And the same thing with wrestling.
You gotta take it one match at a time.