Montana State freshman to compete in Paralympics this month

BOZEMAN - Montana State University first-year student Michael Kneeland will compete in the Paralympics in Milan, Italy, March 6-15. Kneeland, who was born without the use of his legs, will compete in four cross-country skiing and biathlon events. Kneeland is a Presidential Scholar in MSU's Honors College majoring in electrical engineering and minoring in mechatronics. Both programs are housed in MSU's Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering.

The Paralympics are an international, multisport competition for athletes with physical and intellectual impairments, held in the same host city and venues as the Olympic Games. They grew out of the earlier Stoke Mandeville Games, which were organized in 1948 at a hospital in England as a rehabilitation competition for World War II veterans with spinal cord injuries.

At the 2026 Paralympic Games, which will utilize many of the same Italian venues as the Winter Olympics did last month, Kneeland will compete in the men's sprint sitting biathlon, men's sprint pursuit sitting biathlon, men's cross-country skiing 10k interval start sitting and cross-country skiing men's sprint sitting.

In Italy, Kneeland will have more on his mind than skiing fast and shooting a rifle accurately as part of the biathlon or sprinting a cross-country race. He'll also have his mind on MSU and the two weeks of classes he'll miss. He will take two exams that his coach will proctor, and he'll write one essay for a third class while at the games. His other class is a remote one, which he can catch up on when time allows.

"I think the main challenge is probably just going to be time management," he said. "These are both things I can do - when my body's tired, I can focus on school. When my brain is tired, I can focus on training. So, it's a great trade-off."

Kneeland said he chose electrical engineering as his major because of his love for math and solving problems for people, he said.

"Electrical engineering offers a variety of different jobs after college," he said. "So, if I don't like it, then I can work in different types of engineering jobs. Plus, it is a challenging major … I think it would be good for me to embrace that."

Kneeland, now 20, took up skiing at the age of 17 and has competed in multiple international competitions in cross-country and biathlon, including World Cups, since then. Even when he's not competing, there are significant demands upon his time. Kneeland takes 16 hours of classes as required by the terms of the Presidential Scholarship, sings in his church's men's choir where he co-leads a worship service, volunteers at Bozeman's Heritage Christian School mentoring the school's robotics team and trains as a Paralympian up to 15 hours per week.

"Michael comes to each class with a curious and joyful spirit," said Jim Becker, MSU professor of electrical and computer engineering. "He is always engaged, always participating. While he is away at the Paralympics, he plans to keep pace with the rest of the class and has chosen to take a proctored exam while in Italy instead of waiting until his return to Bozeman. Michael's commitment to excellence is so evident."

Kneeland said he and some of his teammates train in a variety of venues around Bozeman.

"In the summertime, we train on a mountain board, which connects to our sit ski [hardware]. And we usually train at the neighborhood of Triple Tree," Kneeland said. "In winter, when there is snow, we also train at Crosscut (Mountain Sports Center) and Lindley Park."

He said he typically trains with three of his Team USA teammates: Ty Wiberg, Nicole Zaino and Zhenghong Schlechte.

"Michael is fearless, which has enabled him to develop skills very quickly," said Nick Michaud, U.S. Paralympics Nordic Head Coach for the Milano-Cortina Paralympic Games. "For example, he'll happily repeat a difficult maneuvering corner in his sit ski again and again until he owns it. He doesn't shy away from the hard reps - he leans into them. He also brings a playful attitude to serious work. His contagious laugh and lightness raise the energy of the entire group, even in the middle of demanding training blocks. That combination - joy and intensity - is rare.

"What really separates Michael as a competitor, though, is his commitment to growth," Michaud continued. "He seeks feedback, applies it immediately and takes responsibility for his development. He competes with courage, but he trains with intention. That's a powerful mix. We're excited about where his trajectory is heading and proud to have him representing Team USA."

For these Paralympic Games, Team USA had six spots each for men and women in both cross-country and biathlon, but Kneeland didn't make the cutoff - he ranked seventh among men. However, he received a bipartite invitation - or a discretionary qualification slot awarded jointly by the sport's international federation and the International Paralympic Committee to ensure broader representation - for a spot on Team USA. He said he believes the slot was awarded, in part, because of an infection that adversely affected his ability to compete in a World Cup competition in Canada in November.

Kneeland said his goals for this Paralympic Games are simple.

"One, I want to honor God for how he's given me this opportunity," he said. "Second, being able to shoot clean at least one race. Third, I would like to be able to do well on my physics exam and intro to electrical fundamental exam, preferably getting 90% or higher."

Kneeland, who before enrolling at MSU attended Heritage Christian School in Bozeman, credits his life's trajectory to divine blessings, emphasizing that his accomplishments are "not because he is some kind of superhuman." He spent his first 12 years in an orphanage in Dandong, China, located along the border with North Korea. He says his circumstances there likely helped him gain exceptional upper-body strength. The orphanage didn't have the funding for a wheelchair or prosthetics, so his primary means of mobility was crawling using his arms.

"I feel like I can meet the challenge with the top of my body because I just used my hands constantly at the orphanage. I basically crawled like a monkey," Kneeland said. "Plus, I enjoy being outside in snow. So, I think that kind of makes it perfect combination. I think that's why I'm good at [cross-country skiing and biathlon]."

At the age of 12, he was adopted by Linda and Paul Kneeland, who brought him home to Bozeman.

"We purchased his first wheelchair for him in China within about an hour of picking him up at a government building," Linda Kneeland said.

After three major surgeries, she said, he was able to walk with prosthetics. "He does feel it was worth it to be able to stand up with his peers rather than being trapped in a wheelchair," Linda Kneeland said.

He views the transformation of his life from the orphanage in China to his life in Bozeman as evidence "of a great plan that someone had planned out for me," he said. "That's not just a coincidence; that's not just accidental. That is a blessing."

"I believe his faith is the number one reason why he is so stable, disciplined, mature and loving," Linda Kneeland said. "Almost from the day he got here he has been interested in learning all he could about God and he invests in his relationship with Jesus on a daily basis. This has led to incredible emotional stability, and God gets all the credit for all that Michael is and all that he does."

Michael Kneeland has five brothers and sisters. Fred Kneeland, 31, is a 2016 MSU graduate in computer science and his sister Marilee Kneeland, 30, is a 2017 MSU graduate in cell biology, neuroscience and microbiology, also from the Honors College. His sister Chen Kneeland, 23, was also adopted from China. His two other siblings are Jessica Butterfield, 27, and David Kneeland, 24.

Media outlets covering the 2026 Paralympics include NBC, USA Network, CNBC and the Peacock streaming service. The live-event schedule is available online.