Business owner to host wheelchair rugby tourney, play with 1st all-veteran team

MILWAUKEE -- Wheelchair rugby is described as a combination of hockey, football and soccer.

Noah Currier

"It tips super easy," said Noah Currier of his wheelchair.

Currier was at the Milwaukee VA Medical Center Wednesday, March 13 picking out a new wheelchair. He said he fell into a depression for years.

"I served from 2000 to 2004. Right when I got home after the invasion of Iraq, I was in a bad car accident. In a wheelchair, your life ends where the pavement ends," said Currier.

Then he discovered adaptive sports. He said his favorite is wheelchair rugby.

Noah Currier

"The adrenaline that you feel, the camaraderie, the strategy behind the sport -- there's a lot of really cool stuff, but the hits are awesome," said Currier.

Currier said he credits adaptive sports with saving his life -- and he wants to help others discover the rush.

"It gave me that team again. In the military, you're with a unit. You got a bunch of brothers around you and you're surrounded by people who have chewed the same dirt as you. In rugby, it's the same thing," said Currier.

Currier founded the company Oscar Mike. The apparel company serves as "a leading provider of funding for injured veterans to stay on the move."

Oscar Mike is hosting the national tournament for wheelchair rugby.

Oscar Mike

"To have the Oscar Mike logo on all that and to be the ones hosting it, it really is unreal," said Currier.

As of Wednesday, hundreds of volunteers were still needed for the tournament March 29-31 in Rockford, Illinois.

Currier will be playing with the first all-veteran team.