At Sana Living, we understand that living with a disability means you will likely face challenges throughout your life. However, many people living with a disability have found sport to be a great motivator, helping them to overcome difficulties and achieve their goals.

Sports and recreational activities can help to create an encouraging social environment and cultivate a positive outlook. Multiple studies indicate that physical activity can not only improve your physical health, but can also have a huge impact on your mental and emotional wellbeing – both immediately and in the long run.

The advantages of physical activity are well-documented and plentiful, and include:

  • Improved physical health
  • Higher energy levels
  • Increased social activity
  • Improved confidence
  • Improved communication, teamwork and leadership skills
  • Increased motivation and resilience

In this blog post, we will take a look at 6 Australian athletes with disabilities. These young Australian Paralympians are poised to make an impact in the world of sport in 2022, having worked hard to overcome their disability and achieve success in their chosen sport.

Dylan Alcott

Australian Tennis Player | Born: 4 December 1990

Wheelchair tennis champion Dylan Alcott is an Australian athlete who has won several Grand Slam titles. Born with a tumour on his spinal cord, Alcott was paralyzed from the waist down at the age of four.

Despite this, he went on to achieve success in a number of sports, including wheelchair basketball and wheelchair tennis.

In 2014, Alcott won his first Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open, and he has since gone on to win two more major titles. He has also won a silver medal at the Paralympic Games and is currently ranked as the world’s number one wheelchair tennis player.

Outside of his sporting career, Alcott is also an advocate for people with disabilities and is a member of the board of directors for the National Disability Insurance Scheme in Australia.

In 2017, he was named Young Australians of the Year in recognition of his achievements on and off the court. Dylan Alcott is an inspiration to many people worldwide, proving that anything is possible with hard work and determination.

Katja Dedekind

Australian Swimmer | Born: 17 August 2001

Katja Dedekind is an impressive young swimmer who made her debut with Paralympics Australia in the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, where she won a bronze medal in the women’s 100m backstroke (S13).

Since then, she has won many medals while representing Australia, including bronze in the Women’s 400m Freestyle (S13) and the Women’s 100m Backstroke (S13) at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.

Ben Tudhope

Australian Snowboarder | Born: 13 December 1999

In 2014, Ben Tudhope became the youngest ever Australian to compete in the Winter Paralympic Games. At the recent Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, he represented Australia as Co-Captain while also taking out Bronze in the Men’s Snowboard Cross SB-LL2.

He is now a three-time Paralympic snowboarder who has achieved so much, although he is just at the start of his career.

Isis Holt

Australian Athletics | Born: 3 July 2001

Since 2014, Isis Holt has been making waves in the Para-Athletics scene. Only a year into her athletics career, she won gold in the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha, Qatar, and qualified for the 2016 paralympic games.

Then, at just age 20, she brought home Silver for Athletics Australia while competing in the women’s 100m (T35), with a time of 13.13 seconds while competing in the Tokyo Paralympics.

Amy Ridley

Australian Goalballer | Born: 10 July 2002

In 2017, Amy Ridley discovered Goalball and has been passionately playing ever since. The Australian Paralympic Committee quickly recruited her into the Australian Paralympic team, who brought home two big wins in 2021 at the Tokyo game against Canada and Russia.

Ari Gesini

Australian Athletics | Born: 23 December 2001

Since age 5, Ari Gesini has been training in athletics. Today his specialities of long jump and 100m have taken him to Switzerland, Dubai, and Tokyo. He hopes to represent Australia in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and bring home gold.

And there you have our pick of the top 5 Australian athletes with disabilities for 2022.

At Sana Living, we offer a range of luxury disability housing options across WA, QLD and SA. For more information on our SDA service offering, please contact our friendly team today.