Rob HislopAmanda Rummery, a University of Alberta student and Pandas track and field athlete, qualified for the 2024 Paris Paralympics. She will participate in the 400-metre dash on August 30 and 31.
Soon entering her final year of an education degree, Rummery has just completed her second-year as a Pandas track and field athlete. This is her seventh-year doing the sport.
“I got involved very late … compared to other athletes. I feel like I’ve had to play catch up a little bit and work extra hard to get to where I am today,” Rummery said.
Rummery was in an all-terrain vehicle accident in 2015, a month after her high school graduation. The accident left her with a paralyzed dominant arm. In 2018, she had her arm amputated.
“[Being able to amputate] was easily the most freeing, positive experience of my life. It allowed me to really take track to the next level,” Rummery said.
A year later, Rummery qualified for the 2019 Parapan American Games, and represented Canada in Lima, Peru. That same year, she went to the World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai for the first time.
Rummery started her track journey with a para-group working out of the U of A at the Steadward Centre for Personal and Physical Achievement. Since she had started late in the sport, joining any track and field club was not feasible, she said.
“It was a group of individuals with different physical and mental impairments. [The group] helped and allowed me to feel comfortable and confident. Never having done track and field, I wouldn’t have had the confidence to go out there with a disability in a sling,” Rummery said.
“I’m confident in my abilities to go out there and perform on demand,” Rummery says
Rummery came close to qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. Although initially upset, Rummery used the experience to motivate her to close the gap between her and her competitors.
“I have sacrificed a lot to get here. I’m not a natural athlete. I don’t believe that I have a lot of natural talent, but I’ve worked hard. To see all of that pay off, and to finally get that recognition and the acknowledgement of making Team Canada and being called a Paralympian is truly spectacular,” Rummery said.
At the Paralympics, Rummery will run the 400-meter dash. This is the longest sprint and poses its own set of challenges.
“It is an all-out sprint, but your body isn’t meant to sprint for that long. Adjusting and learning how to run such a challenging race when I was a bit late to the game has definitely posed its challenges,” Rummery said.
She is looking forward to experiencing the Paralympics alongside her fellow Team Canada para-athletes.
“I’m confident in my abilities to go out there and perform on demand. Team Canada para-athletes [are] a tight-knit group. We’re made up of varying disabilities, and we compete at different events, but we come together. We are truly so close and such a positive, encouraging group of athletes. I’m excited to share the experience with all the other Canadian para-athletes.”
