Even the strongest of swimmers get tears in their goggles.
Just ask 16-year-old Rylee Sayer, whose list of achievements has become even longer after being selected to compete as an Aquablack at her first-ever World Para Swimming Championships.
The Hauraki Plains College student was born with a rare genetic condition called Tuberous Sclerosis Complex, and in October, 2023, she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bone cancer – an osteosarcoma – in her proximal humerus, which forms the ball of the shoulder’s ‘ball and socket’.
By November of that year, she had to have a forequarter amputation of her right arm, scapula and clavicle.
But with all her grit and determination, Rylee has taken the trauma of the past year and has turned it into a positive. Swimming out of the Matamata Swim Club under coach Graeme Laing, she has worked hard to find her way in the pool again.
“All the training and hard work has paid off,” she told The Profile. “It’s been so worth it. I’m really proud of myself for never giving up.
“I have to be honest, I have had a lot of tears in my goggles, but my motivation always kicks in to wipe them away.”
Rylee said she was “overwhelmed” to find out she’d been selected to compete as an Aquablack at the swimming championships – held from September 21-27 in Singapore.
She said she cried with joy alongside her mum Amanda and a close friend who gave her “a big hug”.
“I am beyond grateful to have the opportunity to represent New Zealand,” she said. “I honestly never thought about it until I lost my arm. It was then that my determination stepped up another level and my confidence grew in believing in myself and that I could achieve it.”
Rylee explained that at the world champs, she will be swimming against other paraswimmers in the same class as her – S7.
“S7 class is for athletes with varying levels of physical impairment,” she said, “including those with short stature, major limb loss or coordination difficulties, particularly on one side of the body.”
Being her first Worlds, she said it was hard to know what to expect, but she was hoping to get into a finals race and achieve some personal best times.
“Mentally, I always listen to hype music to get me ready to race. I don’t talk to anyone but myself before the blocks. Physically, I do lots of stretching and always do a good warm up in the pool,” she said.
Rylee mostly trains for 90 minutes, six or seven times a week, both in the morning and afternoon.
She said her motivation stems from how far she has come from the start of her cancer journey.
“Little me would be so proud of how far I have come now,” she said. “Thank you to everyone that has been helping me on this journey, especially my family.”
DETAILS: Rylee is raising funds to get her over to Singapore for the Worlds. To help out, visit givealittle.co.nz and search for ‘Rylee Sayer’.
BY KELLEY TANTAU
