{"id":233348,"date":"2020-10-26T07:27:08","date_gmt":"2020-10-26T12:27:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=233348"},"modified":"2020-10-23T17:49:00","modified_gmt":"2020-10-23T22:49:00","slug":"olympic-baby-down-syndrome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/olympic-baby-down-syndrome\/","title":{"rendered":"Olympic couple welcomes baby with Down syndrome: ‘He’s absolutely perfect’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A pair of Olympic bobsledders are adapting to their new life as parents. Nic Taylor and Elana Meyers Taylor are both bobsledders with Team USA, in training for the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing. Their son, Nico, has Down syndrome<\/a> \u2014 but that isn’t holding back their gold medal dreams for him.<\/p>\n

According to the Washington Post<\/a>, the Taylors decided to start their family between Olympic games. A new U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee policy made that possible; before, athletes would lose their monthly stipend and health insurance if they stopped their training schedules for pregnancy and childbirth. It was only this year that athletes would continue to receive their benefits during pregnancy, as well as for a year after childbirth, so long as they committed to returning to their sport.<\/p>\n

This policy was crucial for the Taylor family. A Team USA profile<\/a> explained that Meyers Taylor didn’t think it was possible for her to get pregnant, but miraculously, she did. Then she suffered polyhydramnios (too much amniotic fluid) throughout the pregnancy. Nico also had various issues, including low heart rate. When Nico stopped moving as much as usual, Meyers Taylor was induced, and Nico was born early, having to spend eight days in the NICU. It was then that he was diagnosed with Down syndrome.<\/p>\n

“If we didn\u2019t have health insurance, I highly doubt I\u2019d be able to return to bobsled,” she told the Washington Post.<\/p>\n