00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:03.280
(DRAMATIC ORCHESTRAL MUSIC)

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Growing up, I never really
saw anyone like me,

00:00:15.280 --> 00:00:16.880
other than on TV,

00:00:16.920 --> 00:00:19.400
and what I did see
really confused me.

00:00:19.440 --> 00:00:23.280
Often disabled people are seen
as either objects of inspiration,

00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:25.080
or objects of pity.

00:00:25.120 --> 00:00:27.800
And, my god, they love inspiration,
don't they?

00:00:27.840 --> 00:00:28.840
(PLAYFUL MUSIC)

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They're frothin' for it.

00:00:30.320 --> 00:00:33.760
Nothing makes a non-disabled person
feel better about themselves

00:00:33.800 --> 00:00:36.760
than seeing a disabled girl
be asked to prom.

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It's what Stella Young called
"inspiration porn"

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and it's all around us.

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(APPLAUSE)

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But how does this affect how
disabled people see themselves?

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What, am I supposed to be inspiring
like Forrest Gump 24-7?

00:00:51.360 --> 00:00:54.080
Either that, or a Bond villain.

00:00:54.120 --> 00:00:55.120
(CAT SCREAMS)

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Even Luke Skywalker, right?

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(VRRUUM SOUND)

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He started off as a hero,

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but then as soon as he lost his arm,
all downhill from there.

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(DING)

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His girlfriend became his sister,

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and he ended up all sad and alone
on some island.

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(SOFT WIND TRANSITION)

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Doesn't look good for me, does it?

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Inspiration, or pity -
I have to make my choice.

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I don't really want to be pitied,

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so I guess I have to be
an inspiration.

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But how?

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(GRAND MUSIC STING)

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-..every day to think about stocks.

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- Oh, hey guys.

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I'm trying to be the most
inspiring person ever...

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..and I could really use your input.

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What do you find inspiring
about disabled people?

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- That they don't let anything
get in their way.

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- I think their courage
and their ability to adapt.

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- Having the drive to sort of
overcome something like that.

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- They keep going no matter what.

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- Yeah, their tenacity.

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- I really don't feel like
that's your responsibility.

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- Who do you think is the most
inspiring disabled person?

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- Who's that really smart guy's name?
Um...

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- I'd go like Stephen Hawking.

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- Paralympian.

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- Paralympian.
- Paralympians.

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- It's Paralympian,
not "Para Olympian", right?

00:02:04.920 --> 00:02:06.920
- Yes, it is Paralympian.
- Yeah.

00:02:06.960 --> 00:02:09.040
- I'm sick of people saying
"Para Olympians".

00:02:09.080 --> 00:02:10.120
- Yeah.

00:02:10.160 --> 00:02:11.880
- So like Paralympians
are the most inspiring.

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- Yeah, like they're amazing to me,
I love them.

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- What do you think about
Paralympians?

00:02:15.240 --> 00:02:18.200
- Um, I think it's amazing,
it's incredible.

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It's so inspiring...

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..because...

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Oh, why is that so inspiring?

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(VOICEOVER) The people have spoken.

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If I want to be inspiring,
I've got to be a Paralympian.

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So you're a Paralympian, right?
- I am.

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I do triathlons.

00:02:33.320 --> 00:02:37.240
I need to be fast at three sports -
swimming, cycling, and running.

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- Do people tell you
you're inspiring all the time?

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- All the time, all the time, yeah.

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Yeah, I don't know why.

00:02:43.440 --> 00:02:45.400
- When do they tell you
you're inspiring?

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- When I'm buying a coffee.

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Inspiring because I went
and had a go in a race and, you know,

00:02:50.600 --> 00:02:52.280
"You did so well, good on you."

00:02:52.320 --> 00:02:55.920
- What are the hardest parts
of being a Paralympian?

00:02:55.960 --> 00:02:57.800
- Just, yeah, the training
is really hard,

00:02:57.840 --> 00:02:59.360
you have to be really dedicated,

00:02:59.400 --> 00:03:03.200
and you have to be willing to
sacrifice a few things in your life.

00:03:03.240 --> 00:03:06.720
Like, your whole life has to
revolve around that goal of being

00:03:06.760 --> 00:03:08.200
the best athlete you can be.

00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:09.600
- What do you do?
How do you train?

00:03:09.640 --> 00:03:10.880
Give me the tips.

00:03:10.920 --> 00:03:14.440
- About 20 hours, 25 hours a week
of swimming, cycling, running,

00:03:14.480 --> 00:03:15.480
and gym work.

00:03:15.520 --> 00:03:18.440
Paralympians are not, like...
they're pretty elite athletes,

00:03:18.480 --> 00:03:19.920
they take it pretty seriously.

00:03:19.960 --> 00:03:23.280
So they've got to work pretty hard at
what they do to get to that level.

00:03:23.320 --> 00:03:25.080
- So, what time do you
wake up in the morning?

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- Well, this morning, for example,
I was up at 5AM

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and was in the pool by 6AM
doing a 3.5, 4km swim set.

00:03:32.200 --> 00:03:35.560
- Do you have to eat healthy
and stuff to be a Paralympian?

00:03:35.600 --> 00:03:36.880
- 100 percent, yeah.

00:03:36.920 --> 00:03:40.000
If you want to be really fit and fast
and be the best in the world,

00:03:40.040 --> 00:03:41.080
you've got to eat healthy.

00:03:41.120 --> 00:03:42.560
You're definitely gonna have to eat
a pretty strict diet

00:03:42.600 --> 00:03:43.640
if you want to get to
the Paralympics.

00:03:43.680 --> 00:03:46.000
- I get it. Eat an apple,
I'll be fine.

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(UPBEAT MUSIC)

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(CRUNCH)

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Bring it on.

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(STRAINS)

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(MUSIC CONTINUES)

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(MUSIC ENDS)

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Eh!

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(EXHALES)

00:04:27.720 --> 00:04:31.000
So, I totally failed
with everything on land.

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But maybe I'm a water baby.

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(BRIGHT MUSIC)

00:04:49.320 --> 00:04:50.320
Ah!

00:04:55.320 --> 00:04:57.400
Ellie! Wait up!

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Ah!

00:05:11.520 --> 00:05:13.920
God, Ellie, you're good at
swimming, hey?

00:05:13.960 --> 00:05:15.240
- (LAUGHS)

00:05:16.080 --> 00:05:16.920
- I suck.

00:05:16.960 --> 00:05:18.080
- I was saying before you got in -

00:05:18.120 --> 00:05:19.240
it's a bit subjective
on how good you are.

00:05:19.280 --> 00:05:22.320
Like if I compare myself to Thorpey,
I don't think I'm very good at all.

00:05:22.360 --> 00:05:26.760
- I heard that you're the most
decorated female Paralympian ever.

00:05:26.800 --> 00:05:27.800
- Yes.

00:05:27.840 --> 00:05:29.680
- How many medals have you won?

00:05:29.720 --> 00:05:32.400
- I have 17 Paralympic medals.

00:05:32.440 --> 00:05:34.200
- What?
- Yeah, I know.

00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:36.560
- Do you think you're inspiring?

00:05:36.600 --> 00:05:39.400
- I think some people think of me
as inspiring in like different ways.

00:05:39.440 --> 00:05:43.440
Like, I can tell if someone's being
like inspiring / patronising,

00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:47.200
and I can tell if someone's being
like inspiring because I'm an athlete

00:05:47.240 --> 00:05:49.840
or because like I've been swimming
for so long.

00:05:49.880 --> 00:05:51.320
- Were you born a Paralympian?

00:05:51.360 --> 00:05:53.080
Did you just dive
out of the uterus...

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- (LAUGHS)

00:05:54.160 --> 00:05:57.800
-..fully covered in medals
and the full Paralympic garb?

00:05:57.840 --> 00:06:01.000
- No, I actually came out with
two arms and two legs.

00:06:01.040 --> 00:06:04.520
- They think I was born with cancer
and then it was found when I was two.

00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:06.760
And then I had my leg
amputated at three.

00:06:06.800 --> 00:06:09.960
And then I jumped in
like eight weeks later into a pool,

00:06:10.000 --> 00:06:12.920
and, um, learnt how to use
my body again with the water.

00:06:12.960 --> 00:06:17.680
- So how do people respond
when they hear your story?

00:06:17.720 --> 00:06:20.760
- If I talk about that I've won
like 17 metals, they're impressed.

00:06:20.800 --> 00:06:23.000
But then they kind of...
their eyes shift down,

00:06:23.040 --> 00:06:25.800
and they're like, "Yeah, but like,
what happened to..."

00:06:25.840 --> 00:06:26.840
- Yeah, yeah.

00:06:26.880 --> 00:06:28.960
- And so like I'll tell them that
I had cancer and then they're like...

00:06:29.000 --> 00:06:31.280
(GASPS)..and they're all shocked
that, you know,

00:06:31.320 --> 00:06:33.800
I can be an athlete and have
a disability at the same time.

00:06:33.840 --> 00:06:37.000
And then all of a sudden it's like
I earn 1,000 inspiration points.

00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:39.600
It's like...it's like I can see it in
front of me like, ding, ding, ding!

00:06:39.640 --> 00:06:41.240
Like I'm ticking boxes.

00:06:41.280 --> 00:06:42.240
If you're a Paralympian,

00:06:42.280 --> 00:06:45.440
like all that you need to do is get
up and swim and people will like see,

00:06:45.480 --> 00:06:47.680
you know, your story behind you
being an athlete

00:06:47.720 --> 00:06:50.680
and like will, like align themselves
with your story

00:06:50.720 --> 00:06:52.200
rather than your athletic
achievements in a way.

00:06:53.240 --> 00:06:54.560
(VOICEOVER) Ellie was right.

00:06:54.600 --> 00:06:57.640
If I want to be an
inspirational Paralympian,

00:06:57.680 --> 00:07:00.880
I need to perfect
the ultimate sob story.

00:07:00.920 --> 00:07:04.160
Are any of you curious about
like what happened to me?

00:07:04.200 --> 00:07:05.160
- I'd love to hear your story.

00:07:05.200 --> 00:07:07.280
- You sure can,
it's a very unusual story.

00:07:07.320 --> 00:07:10.200
I was jumping out of an aeroplane
with the parachute

00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:12.160
and the parachute cord got like
trapped around my arm

00:07:12.200 --> 00:07:14.080
and as the parachute went out,
it just like.

00:07:14.120 --> 00:07:15.120
And like went.

00:07:15.160 --> 00:07:16.920
- Dramatic.
- Like a Barbie doll arm.

00:07:16.960 --> 00:07:19.160
- I refused to stop clapping
for health care workers.

00:07:20.800 --> 00:07:24.080
- I saw a dog trapped in a car.
- (GASPS)

00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:27.160
- I punched through the window
to rescue a dog

00:07:27.200 --> 00:07:29.920
and severed my arm partially off.

00:07:29.960 --> 00:07:32.640
- I was filing my nails
and I just got carried away.

00:07:32.680 --> 00:07:34.640
I just went right down to
my elbow.

00:07:34.680 --> 00:07:35.760
- I don't know what happened.

00:07:35.800 --> 00:07:37.800
- I donated too much blood.

00:07:37.840 --> 00:07:39.000
- Uh-oh.

00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:40.240
- Have you heard of Nutribullets?

00:07:41.560 --> 00:07:42.600
- I was just born this way,

00:07:42.640 --> 00:07:45.080
but do you think that's
a boring story?

00:07:45.120 --> 00:07:46.960
(PLAYFUL MUSIC)

00:07:47.000 --> 00:07:48.000
- Ah...

00:07:49.360 --> 00:07:52.680
Maybe I'm not inspiring enough,
you know?

00:07:53.800 --> 00:07:56.320
Does that make me
a bad disabled person?

00:07:57.120 --> 00:08:02.160
I just can't believe that
I thought I could be a Paralympian.

00:08:02.200 --> 00:08:04.880
I've...I've never been
good at sports.

00:08:04.920 --> 00:08:05.920
(CHUCKLES)

00:08:07.680 --> 00:08:13.480
Honestly, I...I think it's just
hard enough being a disabled person.

00:08:13.520 --> 00:08:16.880
We live under the poverty line
with Centrelink.

00:08:17.440 --> 00:08:20.440
We constantly have to
jump through hoops with NDIS

00:08:20.480 --> 00:08:22.600
just for basic human rights.

00:08:22.640 --> 00:08:26.720
And we're underrepresented,
underemployed, underpaid.

00:08:27.240 --> 00:08:29.800
We're ignored, we're abused,

00:08:29.840 --> 00:08:33.520
and don't even get me started
on this pandemic.

00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:42.640
I just...now I have to be inspiring,
as well, on top of all this?

00:08:42.680 --> 00:08:44.120
(CROWD CHATTER)

00:08:44.160 --> 00:08:45.800
I reached out to my friend Hannah.

00:08:46.360 --> 00:08:49.000
She always knows what to do.

00:08:49.680 --> 00:08:53.320
- Have you ever thought about
not trying to be inspirational

00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:56.120
and just trying to be you?

00:08:56.160 --> 00:08:57.920
- I'm sorry, what?
- What if you tried that?

00:08:57.960 --> 00:08:59.680
- But that's nothing special,
like...

00:08:59.720 --> 00:09:00.720
- Does it have to be?

00:09:00.760 --> 00:09:03.040
- Yeah, but society won't accept me
as like...

00:09:03.080 --> 00:09:05.120
Just like, "Oh, silly Maddie."

00:09:05.160 --> 00:09:07.960
"Oh, Maddie who wears like
the cute little outfits."

00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:09.480
You just make it look so easy.

00:09:09.520 --> 00:09:10.880
Don't you ever worry?

00:09:10.920 --> 00:09:13.920
Don't you ever fall in...
into like where I am right now

00:09:13.960 --> 00:09:16.040
where I just don't know where I fit?

00:09:16.080 --> 00:09:18.440
- Pretty much every single day.

00:09:18.480 --> 00:09:21.120
I don't really think of myself
as inspirational,

00:09:21.160 --> 00:09:24.800
I just think of myself as being me.

00:09:24.840 --> 00:09:28.600
Like, I wouldn't say I'm quite
at the point of loving myself yet,

00:09:28.640 --> 00:09:32.280
but I'm definitely at a point
where I can recognise that like

00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:34.200
I have value.

00:09:34.240 --> 00:09:35.200
- Yep.

00:09:35.240 --> 00:09:38.080
- And that's coming from a place
where for a long time

00:09:38.120 --> 00:09:39.960
I didn't think I would
ever get there.

00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:42.040
Eventually, your brain
will get the memo,

00:09:42.080 --> 00:09:44.240
you just have to keep trying.

00:09:44.280 --> 00:09:49.560
- Where is the line, do you think,
between genuine inspiration

00:09:49.600 --> 00:09:51.080
and harmful inspiration?

00:09:51.120 --> 00:09:54.080
- And having low expectations
of what we can do,

00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:58.160
or being surprised to see us
like enjoying our lives

00:09:58.200 --> 00:10:00.760
and not like wanting to die
and be sad.

00:10:00.800 --> 00:10:01.760
That's harmful,

00:10:01.800 --> 00:10:06.200
but I think inspiration from
one disabled person to another,

00:10:06.240 --> 00:10:08.520
that is never ever harmful.

00:10:08.560 --> 00:10:11.760
You don't need to be anything other
than yourself, you know that, right?

00:10:11.800 --> 00:10:13.480
(UPBEAT MUSIC)

00:10:13.520 --> 00:10:16.400
- All this time I thought
I had to be inspirational

00:10:16.440 --> 00:10:17.760
in order to be valid.

00:10:17.800 --> 00:10:19.040
But that's silly.

00:10:19.080 --> 00:10:22.800
Sure, some of us have won
Australian of the Year,

00:10:22.840 --> 00:10:25.680
but I just drank a whole bottle
of wine in the bath.

00:10:25.720 --> 00:10:27.960
We've all got our own achievements.

00:10:28.800 --> 00:10:31.960
I don't need your validation,
I don't want it.

00:10:32.000 --> 00:10:35.480
I'm not your inspiration,
and I'm not your pity, either.

00:10:35.520 --> 00:10:37.000
I'm just me.

00:10:37.040 --> 00:10:38.040
And that's enough.

00:10:38.080 --> 00:10:40.680
(MUSIC CONTINUES)

00:10:43.680 --> 00:10:46.520
Captioned by Ai-Media
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