Amanda Reynolds not deterred by surgery

“This is very special, my team as well as everyone else competing will go into the history books forever.”

Australia’s Amanda Reynolds did not get the result she wanted from the 2016 Para Canoe World Championships back in May. But that is no indicator on how she would perform in September’s Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

About five weeks before the World Championships, Reynolds underwent surgery to remove her appendix. She was still able to race in Duisburg, Germany, finishing just 0.44 seconds behind Great Britain’s first-place Anne Dickins in the women’s KL 3 200m.

Although not at full strength, Reynolds was content with her finish.

“Actually ending up where I was at is really fantastic, and it helps me knowing that I can still be on the top of our game,” she said after her race.

Reynolds described how she discovered she needed surgery; at first, she thought it was not serious.

“We went for training on a Monday morning and my side was feeling a little bit glitchy, so I rang the boss to ask her what she thought. And she said ‘get to the hospital quickly,’” she recalled.

As soon as she arrived at the hospital, Reynolds asked if they could get this sorted that same day so that she could train in the afternoon.

“They [the doctors] sort of looked at me and said ‘no.’ The next morning I was in surgery,” she said.

It has been more than three months since Reynolds’ surgery, and she said feels back on track for Rio 2016.

“I am back to full fitness now,” Reynolds said. “My times in training are pretty consistent and I am feeling pretty comfortable doing those times, so hopefully that is a good sign.”

The 2015 world champion is a contender for gold in Rio, where she will make her Paralympic debut and face strong competition from two-time world champion Dickins.

Canoe will make its first appearance at the Paralympics this September, and Reynolds looks forward to making it worthwhile with her five other teammates hitting the waters with her.

“I feel excited, apprehensive, proud, nervous, honoured and humbled. It is pretty surreal, really. I thought it might sink in when the actual team was announced and I received my ticket to Rio, but it has not,” Reynolds said.

“This is very special, my team as well as everyone else competing will go into the history books forever.”

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Sport fans from around the world can now buy their Paralympic tickets for Rio 2016 from authorised ticket resellers (ATRs)

The IPC’s Global ATR is Jet Set Sports, and Rio 2016 tickets and packages can be purchased on the CoSport website.

Residents of Brazil can buy 2016 Paralympics tickets directly from the Rio 2016 website.

Visa International is the exclusive payment card and the official payment system for the Paralympic Games.