Disabled. Handicapped. Challenged.
These are words that definitely do not apply to Nicholas Knotts, who prefers only two words to describe himself and his approach to life ? ‘No limitations.?
Even though the Oxford Middle School seventh-grader is missing his left foot and part of his left leg, he is active as can be participating in baseball, flag football, basketball, golf, deer hunting, robotics and his new favorite, skeet shooting.
‘When I get into high school, I don’t know what I am going to do in the fall because robotics season overlaps with skeet shooting and I’m not giving up skeet shooting for the world,? he said.
Nicholas, 12, is by no means a shy kid nor does he seem to be the least bit self-conscious about his condition.
He exudes confidence when he speaks. He’s funny and can rattle off sports trivia like an announcer on ESPN.
‘I think he challenges people’s preconceived notions of what a kid with a disability should be like,? said his mother Kelli Knotts. ‘He’s very confident. He’s very outspoken. He’s very active.?
When asked about the Flex-Foot Cheetah blade he wears ? a custom-built, high performance carbon fiber foot designed for sporting activities ? Nicholas placed his leg on the table and said, ‘Here, let me show you.?
He then proceeded to take off the blade and explain to this reporter how it works and how it affixes to the remaining portion of his left leg.
The blade is the same type that South African sprint runner Oscar Postorius, a double amputee, wears when he competes.
Nicholas said he can run ‘quite a bit? faster wearing his blade as opposed to a traditional prosthetic.
‘It’s amazing how much better he runs with that leg on,? said his dad Stephen Knotts.
And when it comes to playing basketball, he said, ‘I can jump about twice as high on this one.?
Nicholas is so active with his blade that he breaks the foot every three to six months.
‘They have yet to find a foot that he can’t break,? Kelli said.
‘No foot is unbreakable,? said Nicholas with a smile.
Having the blade instead of a real foot doesn’t bother Nicholas at all.
‘I’m used to it,? he said. ‘Some days I don’t even notice. The only time I notice some days is when I put my leg on in the morning and take it off at night.?
‘For him, it’s really no big deal,? Stephen said. ‘He’s never known anything different. It’s all he’s ever known, right from the get-go.?
Nicholas was born with a condition called fibular hemimelia, a congenital longitudinal limb deficiency characterized by complete or partial absence of the fibula bone (or calf bone) in the lower leg, according to orpha.net. It’s estimated that 1 in 50,000 are born with this condition.
The fibula plays an important role in the functioning of the leg because the muscles that attach to it help move the knee and ankle joints. It’s one of the three bones that makes up the ankle joint.
When he was born, Stephen said Nicholas? left foot was ‘primarily cartilage with just a couple bones.?
‘It’s like anything ? A connects to B connects to C. When something’s wrong with B, C has problems,? Stephen explained.
Nicholas had only one toe and his left foot wasn’t flat on the bottom. ‘He never would have been able to walk on that,? Kelli said.
This made the decision to have his left foot amputated when he was 10 months old a relatively easy one.
Kelli and Stephen are very glad they didn’t listen to all the doctors who believed, based on ultrasound imaging, that Nicholas had much more severe medical problems and advised them to terminate the pregnancy.
‘They sat us down in this room and they told us every horrible scenario there could possibly be in the world,? Kelli said. ‘We already knew there was no way we were aborting him. He was kicking me really hard.?
Only one doctor, an orthopedic surgeon, suggested it was fibular hemimelia and he was right. ‘He did give us that glimmer of hope,? Kelli said.
Nicholas still gets questions about his leg from his fellow students and a handful of them tease him.
‘There’s been some rough times,? he said. ‘I’m not going to mention any names.?
But by and large, the majority of his classmates are very accepting and he fits right in.
Looking to the future, Knotts might work toward earning a full-ride skeet shooting scholarship to Michigan State University.
‘He’s very good at shooting,? Stephen said.
Back in June, Nicholas? skeet shooting team won a gold medal in the Scholastic Clay Target Program’s state championships. He competes with the Goodrich Martians.
Career-wise, Nicholas is considering becoming a prosthetist, which is a professional who measures, designs, fabricates, fits or services a prosthesis and assists physicians in the formulation of prosthesis prescriptions.
He’s also considering becoming a sports announcer.
‘I would be good at that,? Nicholas said. ‘I could probably recite (the names of) about 250 hockey players right here.?
Nicholas has already achieved a small degree of national fame as he appeared in People Magazine last month.
Back in June, he and 19 other young amputees spent five days in Orlando, Florida being coached by members of the national Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team, which consists of veterans who have sustained severe injuries resulting in amputation while serving in the military/war.
‘They taught us how to play softball real well,? he said. ‘These guys are good.?
Knotts was interviewed and photographed for the magazine piece.
He called the experience of working with the Wounded Warriors ‘amazing? and ‘awesome.? He also enjoyed getting to know other young amputees at the camp.
‘I really had never met kids that had been amputated like me,? Nicholas said. ‘It was a fun experience.?
Nicholas said the camp increased a lot of the kids? confidence levels, including one boy who finally got the courage to wear shorts to school.
He hopes other young amputees will see the magazine story and be ‘inspired? to participate in the camp.
‘That would really touch my heart,? Nicholas said.