We all keep complaining about our lives as to how we’ve got nothing. We keep ignoring the blessings in our lives. However, there are some who work hard with full determination and willpower and show the world that nothing is impossible. So, here are 10 amazing people who have proved that physical disabilities are not a liability. Read their stories and get inspired.
1. Evelyn Glennie
She became deaf at the age of 12. But now, Evelyn is a virtuoso percussionist and she says that she hears from her body parts rather than ears. She received the award of Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2007.
2. Angel Giuffria
Born with just one arm, she worked hard with full determination to become a successful actress. Many of us would think of it a curse to be born with one arm but Angel didn’t let it stop her. She is the Hunger Games actress and has attended several conferences, music festivals etc.
3. Qian Hongyan
When she was just 4 years old, she lost both her legs in a car accident. She got free artificial limbs with the help of Chinese Press and joined the local swimming club for the disabled. Through her sheer determination and hard work, she became a national champion in the Chinese National Paralympics Swimming Competition in the year 2009. Also, she won a gold medal in 2015 in the Yunnan Provincial Paralympic Games in 100-m breaststroke final.
4. Jessica Cox
Jesica doesn’t have both her arms. She’s the world’s first licensed armless pilot as well as the first armless black-belt in the American Taekwondo Association. Also, apart from all this she is also a motivational speaker, an author, certified SCUBA diver, and has competed in the 40-mile segment of El Tour de Tucson. This proves that with willpower a person can do anything.
5. Bethany Hamilton
Bethany suffered a shark attack while surfing and lost her left arm in 2003. But, within one month of this serious attack, she was back on the board. Also, now she’s a very professional surfer.
6. Spencer West
Spencer West achieved the impossible task of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro with only his two hands! It is the highest peak in Africa but it failed to scare him.
7. Marla Runyan
Marla Runyan, despite being blind, won at able-bodied events like a gold medal in the 1500-m race in Pan American Games in 1999. She has also won 4 gold medals at the 1992 Summer Paralympics.
8. Zack Ruhl
Zack was born without thigh bones and suffered from brittle bone disease. So, the doctors had to amputate his legs. But all this didn’t stop him. He is now a CrossFit trainer and can do pushups in his wheelchair.
9. Aaron Fotheringham
At the age of 8 years old, Aaron was confined to a wheelchair. But he practiced with a special wheelchair in the skatepark where his brother used to ride a BMX bike. At the age of 18, he could perform a double backflip with his wheelchair.
10. Amy Purdy
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Amy was an avid snowboarder but at the age of 19 due to a disease, her legs had to be amputated from below knees. Also, she lost both her kidneys and received a kidney from her father later. After just 3 months, she was back on the slopes with her prosthetic legs. She won a silver medal in the 2018 Paralympics and a bronze medal in the 2014 Paralympics in the snowboarding event.
So, after reading all these stories you must be really incredibly inspired. Also, there is one forest officer from India who helped in building 500 toilets in a remote district of Tamil Nadu. Click here to read her story and get some more inspiration.
