Edward is 15 years old and has an Intellectual disability. He loves to sprint 100m, 200m and 400m in para athletic events. Now he will get the chance on 12th May 2017 to run for Australia. He needs your help.
Hi, I’m Sacha, Edward’s proud mum. I have been by Edward’s side for all his sporting achievements. I am his carer, parent, sounding board, mediator, counsellor and help him keep organised. I would love to see him achieve his ultimate goal of representing Australia.
Edward has been competing in Athletics as a para athlete since he was 8 years old, making state level competitions. When he was 10 he started his National Athletics competitions in Adelaide, Brisbane, Tasmania & Canberra. He loves to run and wants to be a fast runner like Usain Bolt.
Edward has an intellectual disability. My son looks like other teenagers on the outside, however he functions very differently – he has autism, he has severe processing disorder, he has severe adaptive processing disorder. His intellectual disability is much more. He finds school work very hard to comprehend, social situations finds difficult, all he wants to do is his SPORT. Edward is scrapping through Year 9, the school work required is way over his level. However the main part about Edward is the “never give-up” attitude.
He loves tennis, football (soccer), basketball, cricket, cross country and ATHLETICS. He is striving to compete internationally as a T20 para athlete. Sport helps my son find his way through life.
In 2017 he competed at Australian Athletics Championships in U16 Para-Men 1500m (Bronze), 800m (Bronze), Discus (Bronze), 200m (Silver), 100m (Silver), Long Jump (Gold), 400m (Gold). His big break came after the 2017 Australian Athletics Championships where he was selected to represent Australia at the International Federation for Intellectual Disability Sport (INAS) Athletics Championships in Junior events. (www.inas.org/event/2017-inas-athletics-championships). This championships occurs once every 2 years.
Edward’s first goal is to compete internationally in Junior events in Bangkok, Thailand in May 2017. Edward’s aim is to win a medal, try to make London for IPC world Championships and keep competing to make Olympics in 2020.
But there’s a problem
Edward needs to raise funds in a short amount of time, to fly and stay with the team. He needs his mother (Sacha) to join him.
Edward always has a hug before each race and says “I love you, Mum and I’m fast and furious too”. This trip is a massive step for him. He needs his Mum to accompany him. To reassure him it is okay, your mum is here: ‘to support you, encourage you, assist in any requirments the team are uncertain about and give you that hug before each race’.
Here’s what we’re doing about it
Promoting his achievements at his high school, in the local newspaper, on social media, local politicians to mention in State parliament and fundraising.
You can join us
We need a total of $7,000. Being part of the Australian team will cost Edward $4,000. This price includes airfares, accomodation, food, transfers, race fees & incidentals. Edward also needs his vaccinations costing $300. Edward needs his mum to come, saying “who else can give me hugs”. The remaining money will fund his mum’s accomodation, flights, transfers and food. Edward already has his eyes on upcoming international events – London 2017, Oceania 2018 &/or Olympics 2020. He loves watching his idol Usain Bolt. Edward will try his hardest in every event to reach his dream.
Thanks for supporting us. These photos show Edward running and holding his 7 medals at the Australian Atheltics Championships 2017. Help him reach his goals, please. Spread the word.