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Vegreville's Paralympian Bronze Medalist Sarah Melenka
Vegreville's Paralympian Bronze Medalist Sarah Melenka
Rosanne Fortier - News Correspondent
There have been new milestones for Warwick-Vegreville resident Sarah Melenka as it has been her first time competing in the Paralympic Games.
Melenka was a member of the Canadian Women’s Sitting Volleyball team that won the country’s first-ever Paralympic medal in the sport, with a bronze in Paris, after winning three straight games to defeat Brazil on Sept. 7.
Sarah expressed that the experience overall has been surreal. She said they had trained so hard leading up to the games, and that finally being there and being able to experience it was incredible! “I tried to take every day and break it into moments to be sure to experience and be present for the entire time as being in a competitive state of mind the days blend when all you do is train and eat and compete so trying to break the days up helped!”
Sarah mentioned that the highlight was having her family there. They supported her to live out her dream and they traveled across the world to watch her do that.
Sarah described the work of being involved in the Olympics. “I sacrificed a lot of missed birthdays, and family events because I dedicated myself to 6 am practices and workouts and put the work in behind doors to ensure I was prepared as much as I could be for this event.”
She stated that each game had its highs and lows. “The China semi-final hurt to lose, but they truly are the best in the world. I’m so proud of how our team fought through that game and fought for every single point. They were just overall the better team!
The moment of being at the Paralympics only comes around every four years so being present for every single point was our goal. We came out in the bronze and executed our game plan to perfection. We played for each other, for the name on our back, for the flag on our jersey and for all of our support systems in Paris or back at home.
In closing, Sarah mentioned that her fiancé will be moving to Minburn County and they will be getting married in 2025. “I think becoming a Paralympian just proves to myself how far I’ve come in life. My surgery and illness happened 10 years ago and I never would have thought I’d bring home a bronze medal for Canada lying in a hospital bed.
It is an indescribable feeling, to know how hard every athlete I’m surrounded with every day and on this stage fought to be here in life and sport. It connects us all in such a special way.”
