Powerful stories that really make us think differently.

The ListenABLE podcast with hosts Dylan Alcott and Angus O’Loughlin is proving to be a huge hit!

Proudly sponsored by Leap in! the podcast is now 17 episodes strong … and counting. Enlightening, inspiring, funny and intense at times, ListenABLE challenges perceptions about what it is like to live with a disability.

Today, we’re exploring some of the inspiring stories and quotes from athletes with a disability who have appeared on the podcast. Click on the links to hear the full episodes.

Kelly Cartwright, OAM.

Sport: Athletics

Disability: Above knee amputee

Kelly discovered running after undergoing radical surgery to remove cancer in her leg at just 15. She went on to win a swag of international awards including gold and a new world record in long jump at the 2012 London Paralympics.

On body confidence – when did you start to love yourself?

“I think honestly the moment things changed for me was with sport. I went down to the athletics track with my running leg and I was still wearing pants and I couldn’t change my (prosthetic) leg over with pants on so I started having to wear shorts. Then I became more confident and … that’s when it changed for me. I stopped wearing a cover on my leg, I wear it out so you can see it. I very rarely wear pants and I don’t do it as a statement. It’s just who I am.”

Listen to Kelly on ListenABLE.

Eliza Green.

Sport: Boxing

Disability: Cerebral palsy

Kelly has never let her disability get in the way of what she wants to achieve, competing in boxing against able bodied competitors. In the podcast, she explains how she avoided anything sports-related at school and would get her mum to write notes so she didn’t have to do sport.

On being publicly “outed” as having cerebral palsy when a trainer posted a photo of her doing a plank to Instagram with the hashtag #cerebralpalsy

“… The moment I saw that my heart just stopped. I thought oh everyone’s gonna know now. And I sat with it for a bit and thought why do you care? The people that matter don’t care and you should be proud, that this is something you should want to show people that even when you do have a disadvantage, you can still do a lot of the things that everyone else does. It might not look the same, it might not even look pretty but you can still do it … I think that we all need to realise that what’s important is you are getting out there and you are doing it.”

Listen to Eliza on ListenABLE

Ben Pettingill.

Sport: Water skiing

Disability: Blindness

Ben lost his eyesight almost overnight at 16 and has since gone on to become the fastest man ever on water skis, trek the Kokoda trail twice and the only legally blind person in the world to complete multiple Spartan Obstacle Course races unaided.

On the challenge of Kokoda

“Every single step, everyone else in my group that came over from Australia had to rotate through in guiding me. I had two poles in each hand so I didn’t use a cane because of the rough terrain … if I was going up or down, someone would move the pole and say put your foot next to that pole. Multiply that by 96km and it soon becomes a bloody long trip”

Listen to Ben on ListenABLE

Dylan Alcott, OAM.

Sport: Wheelchair basketballer, wheelchair tennis player

Disability: Paraplegic

Dylan needs little introduction. He is a 3 time Paralympic Gold Medal winner, motivational speaker and co-host of the ListenABLE podcast, among other things!

On the benefits of starting tennis

“I borrowed a wheelchair and that’s when I first started playing tennis and it was one of the best things that ever happened to me for two reasons. One … I could play myself and two it was the first time I had ever met anyone else with a disability just being normal. And they were older, and they had girlfriends, wives, jobs, lived by themselves, didn’t get dressed by their mum, you know … I was 10.”

Listen to Dylan on ListenABLE

Curtis McGrath, OAM.

Sport: Paracanoist

Disability: Double lower limb amputee

While serving in Afghanistan with the Australian Army, Curtis stepped on a landmine and lost both legs. As he was being stretchered away, he was already thinking about a career as an amputee athlete and won 10 gold medals as a paracanoist between 2014 and 2019.

On doing your best

“(Coaches) want you to go out and do your best. Where you come in the race is almost irrelevant because the regret will come if you didn’t try your hardest to do the best you can.”

On working hard to pursue your dreams

“I’m not world champion because I sit at home and want the world to give me something. I am world champion because I get up and get to work and do it.”

Listen to Curtis on ListenABLE

Tune into ListenABLE online at 
https://www.podcastoneaustralia.com.au/podcasts/listenable or wherever you get your podcasts.

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You can find Leap in! on Facebook by searching @leapinaustralia. Follow and stay up to date with the latest episodes of the ListenABLE podcast, stories, provider news, events and more.

If you have any questions you can call the Leap in! Crew on 1300 05 78 78, contact us via our website (online chat available), email crew@leapin.com.au.

Further reading

Don’t miss the brilliant new podcast series ListenABLE!

Music classes and the NDIS: How Tristan discovered a passion for bass.

What is the difference between plan management and support coordination?