St. Louis, MO (KMOX) - It's the only full-contact Paralympic sport, and Saint Louis University's Sarah Adam is the first women ever named to the US Wheelchair Rugby team, "So we're going in, in these mad max style wheelchairs, fully armored, going full power into each other, flipping over in our chairs." As a lifelong athlete and assistant professor of occupational science and occupational therapy, Adam knows how far she can push her body.
Adam had imagined she would be coaching wheelchair rugby someday as a volunteer, but a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis in 2016, and fast progression of the disease meant a shift in direction. "And so I think for me being able to continue to push my body and compete as an elite athlete shows me and proves to myself that I don't need to be limited by my circumstances. I can push my body to do amazing things despite my disability. And honestly, that athlete mentality I think is what I give credit for why I was able to process this diagnosis and move forward."
Now she's focused on training to go to Paris to compete as a Paralympian this summer. "You definitely have to have a prepared body, both, you know, endurance because it's kind of like hockey where it's just go, go, go. So the endurance, and the muscular endurance -- the strength,. I'm out there with 240 pound males that are coming, hitting me." Adam explains her training regimen, "I'm with a personal trainer three times a week in the weight room and then another three or four times a week in my rugby chair going for pushes through Forest Park or, you know, at the SLU Rec center on the gym court. Then we come together usually once a month as a team for about a week or so."
The sport is expensive. Adam's custom rugby chair cost $10,000. The US team has an equipment manager on staff to deal with in-game issues. She says it's a crucial role. "We've got Chuck French, probably one of the best in the world at it and he comes out if we have a popped tire, they're really quick. They get a minute, at the most, and they usually only take about 15 seconds to either put us back up on our wheels when we fall or change out a flat tire or whatever that we need, even down to bringing out the blowtorches and whatnot, fixing our chairs and welding."
Adam is thrilled that female athletes are gaining more access to Paralympic sports, and also that the Paralympic movement is getting greater exposure, "We just want the opportunity to show them and to see Paralympic athletes getting even sponsorship opportunities in commercials because the reality is our sports may look different, but we're no different than the Olympic athletes. We train just as hard we put in just as much time. We competed at the absolute elite level of our sport and we just want to be shown the same respect."
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