Confidence is an essential attribute of most professional athletes, and Colorado native Malik Jones absolutely exudes it.
“I’m playing a sport that I love that’s super physical, super fast paced, it’s skillful," said Jones, who grew up in Aurora. "When I play hockey, I don’t feel like I have a disability, and I think that’s where I draw a lot of my confidence from.”
Life didn't start fair for the Gateway High School grad.
“I was born with three fingers on both hands," said Jones. "I was born with two legs, but I was missing [the tibia bone] in both legs, so at the age of ten months they amputated my legs.”
From the very beginning, Jones had to deal with the fact that he was different.
“In Kindergarten, early years, [I realized I wasn't like other kids]. I wanted to play football and basketball, and not being able to do those things because of my disability made me realize that. I needed to figure out ways to live my life and still be happy.”
In that pursuit of happiness, he found not everyone was willing to accept him for who he is.
“I wish I didn’t get looked at and stuff like that," said Jones. "As I got older, I realized those people don’t really know [me], they’ve never really seen someone like me. Now I try to be more open to telling them like 'hey, this is what happened.'”
Eventually, Jones found his home on the ice playing sled hockey. But even that came with growing pains.
“I did have problems holding the stick because I [only] have three fingers on each side," said Jones. "Starting out, they used to have to tape my right hand to the stick.”
As with everything in his life, Malik Jones met that challenge head-on. As he increased his grip strength and learned the nuances of sled hockey, he fell in love with the sport.
In some ways, he also found love for himself.
“Going through life, school, as a kid having two missing legs, it was tough," said Jones. "I’ve gotten bullied before, but I never let that stop me.”
"I feel like it’s really hard being disabled to have that type of confidence. [I try] not be so insecure about it and just try to embrace who I am and my disability.”
His resiliency translated to Paralympic gold in 2022. For the second straight game, Jones made the USA Sled Hockey team and will represent America in Milano Cortina.
"[It comes with] a little pressure, but also [I'm] a lot calmer, more prepared, more ready," said Jones. "I’m just excited.”
On his trip to Italy, Malik Jones will carry lessons learned in the cold crucible of a hockey rink.
“I would just tell a young kid to have confidence," said Jones. "Embrace who you are and love who you are, and good things will happen to you.”
