Amy Conroy might not have played wheelchair basketball competitively for Great Britain since Tokyo 2020, but she’s aiming for a historic medal at Paris 2024.
The 31-year-old from Norwich saw a difficult surgery on her amputated leg in 2023 keep her out of competition before a concussion in early 2024 added further time out of the game.
It meant that Conway’s last time in the GB kit was three years ago in the Land of the Rising Sun.
But with a dominating 69-34 victory over Spain in her opening game of the Paris 2024 Paralympics, Conroy has her eyes set on silverware in the French capital in what would be ParalympicsGB's first ever medal in women's wheelchair basketball.
"It’s my first international game for GB since Tokyo," said Conroy, who is one of over 1,000 elite athletes on UK Sport’s National Lottery-funded World Class Programme, allowing them to train full time, have access to the world’s best coaches and benefit from pioneering medical support – which has been vital on their pathway to the Paris 2024 Games.
"I never thought I would be here as I’ve had a bad concussion for months and I’m just so grateful to be here and I’m not taking anything for granted.
"I was so nervous the moment I was subbed in, but my teammates are brilliant, and the plan was just to be in the moment.
"Hopefully I can build from here and take that confidence back.
"We can’t not take confidence from each other during that game. Thank god it’s a team sport.
"We have a massive game against Canada in a few days and I really believe in us."
It's never an easy thing to sit on the side lines and watch on as your teammates prepare for the biggest sporting event in the world, but Conroy used every moment she could to prepare for Paris.
Unable to get into the chair and onto court for months at a time, the Brit instead bided her time and practiced mindfulness over physical skills with the hopes that she would be able to compete in Paris.
Now with the opportunity to go for a medal at her fourth Paralympics, Conroy is soaking up every moment knowing that everything she did to get to this moment was worth it.
"In the past I’ve always been all about leaving no stone unturned but last year I was out with a pretty bad leg surgery and then the concussion, so I’ve was spending every day unable to do anything and just praying to get back.
"I haven’t come in with the preparation that I wanted because of that so I’ve done a lot of mindset and mindfulness work.
"I’m just so grateful to be here and every time I see my family in the crowd I’m holding back tears as they’ve seen me through it all."
National Lottery players raise more than £30million a week for Good Causes including vital funding into sport – from grassroots to elite. To find out more visit: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk
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