“Going to the Paralympic Games is just insane and I am so excited.” – Faye Rogers is ready for her Paralympic Games debut at Paris 2024.
By William Moncrieff
The 21-year-old Para swimmer – who studies at the University of Aberdeen – will be competing in the women’s 100m Butterfly S10, 100m freestyle S10, 400m freestyle S10 and the 200m individual medley SM10 in Paris.
Faye first found out that she was going to become a Paralympian after the Para swimming trials in April. She was nervous immediately after as she felt unwell and wasn’t completely happy with her performance. However, she got selected and was over the moon to get the news.
“It was so exciting to get that confirmation through,” said Faye.
“I just want to go and be my best, make all of that hard work pay off.”
Faye took up Para swimming after a serious car crash left her with life changing injuries. When looking back over the journey she has been on, Faye is incredibly proud with how she reacted.
“I am quite proud of myself for sticking with it and getting to this point”, said Faye, who has been swimming since aged nine.
She continued to say: “As much as my journey in swimming hasn’t looked as I expected it to look as a child, I am still just really proud of myself where I’ve got to.”
“I didn’t dare to dream about the Paralympics until a year and a half ago,” said Faye.
“Following my accident and impairment I didn’t know whether I would be good enough.” Faye made the Paralympics a goal of hers after trials for the World Championships in 2023. It was here that she realised her potential in the sport and consequently, she gave herself a pep talk: “I’ve got a year to work and get myself selected.”
Adding: “That was the point that it became a goal rather than a dream.”
Just a day out from the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Paralympics, Faye has had time to reflect on her journey as an athlete.
“I think having that goal and having that to aim for and work for has been pretty much the only thing that has got me through the last three years. Having a serious accident and being told that you aren’t going to be able to do something that you have done all your life, something you love, is really hard.”
She continued to say, “I think having in the back of my mind there is the Paralympics and I can achieve everything that I wanted to achieve was sort of life changing.”
All of the best of luck in Paris, Faye!
Make sure to follow the action live on Channel 4 and keep up-to-date by following SDS on Facebook, X and Instagram. More information and the competition schedule is available on the SDS website.