On the basketball court, hesitation costs you.
A half-second late on a pass, a sloppy dribble, a weak push off and you’re beat.
20-year-old Anneka plays wheelchair basketball competitively like someone who refuses to give away inches. Every move is deliberate. Her focus is locked in.
Yet an ill-fitting loaner chair was distracting her from being her best.
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High-performance, individual sports were Anneka’s whole life growing up. She built tight friendships racing sailboats in the summer and ski-racing in the winters. Then, only four years ago, Anneka’s disability started to really affect her mobility. Her sailing shoes and ski boots were replaced by a wheelchair and a big void left in her life. Anneka felt lost.
At the time, adaptive sports looked like they weren’t as cool, as physical, or as high-performance as the able-bodied sports Anneka was used to. Adaptive sports were painted as “inspirational” and athletes “overcoming adversity”. She was more than that and she wanted more than that.
An offer to learn wheelchair basketball for a few weeks piqued her interest. Anneka had never played on a team or played a ball sport before. Plus, it was low risk to her confidence since she didn’t have to compare it to anything she’d done before her disability. Her first game of wheelchair basketball fizzled every misconception she had. It felt great to be so wrong about para sports!
With a new perspective on para sports, Anneka found the missing piece of her identity.
Wheeling down the court, dribbling the ball in her right hand as other players take glancing blows off of each others’ chairs, Anneka gets in the zone ready to shoot for the net. Her new basketball wheelchair fits so perfectly. It’s a natural extension of her body.
It’s only because of Shine donors and supporters that Anneka can own customized equipment that helps her function to her highest potential.
Anneka is now faster, more stable, and smooth as the ball spins in the air, swooshing into the net. She scores two points: one for progressing her athletic skills and one for her team!
“I didn’t realize how much better it would feel until I got my Dream basketball wheelchair. It was immediate. It has encouraged me to work harder in the sport. The only thing holding me back from being the best in the world is how hard I try, and I want to thank you for giving me that” – Anneka.
Anneka continues to play on her wheelchair basketball team and has also returned to the slopes to train competitively in ski racing as a mono-skier and para-sailor in the summer. She is using her personal experiences and knowledge to support the adaptive sports community as a youth coach, ambassador, and as a therapeutic recreation student.
“I want to show that adaptive sports are high performance, intense, impressive. It’s athletes, honing the technical skills that we all have within us. I love seeing the benefit this has on peoples’ lives, especially since I’ve lived it” – Anneka.
