Students at Upper Lacombe Elementary School heard inspiring words from a local Paralympic athlete today, as the school kicked off its 15th annual Healthy Living Fair.  

Tammy Cunnington recently returned from the Rio Games where she competed in four swimming events, finishing 11th in the 50-m butterfly, 50-m freestyle and 150-m individual medley.

She also finished 13th in the 50-m breaststroke and broke the world record twice in the S4 50-m butterfly during the 2016 Olympic and Para-swimming trails.

At just six years old, Cunnington was struck by an airplane at a Ponoka air show and the accident left her a paraplegic with the full use of her right arm, plus her core and shoulders.

Cunnington said eating healthy and staying active helped propel her passion for sports and helped lead her on the path to Rio.

“When I started triathlons it was just for recreation and fun because I had gained this new love of fitness, even more than I had when I played basketball. At the beginning I never intended it to be about the Paralympics. You have to find things that you love and fuel that love, let it grow and become something that you probably didn’t even know at the beginning what it would become.”

She added it's important when you're struggling to remember you're not alone.

“I think it’s really easy when we’re struggling to feel like the world is against us, or that we’re the only ones who have these problems. I felt that a little after Rio when I didn’t do as well as I’d hoped, even though rationally I knew I wasn’t the only one who didn’t do as well as they’d hoped. None of those people at Rio at the Olympics and Paralympics, made it there without support and without help behind them.”

Tomorrow students will spend the whole day focusing on their own health and wellness by eating healthy and staying active as part of the schools Healthy Living Fair.