SLU Assistant Professor Sarah Adam: A 2024 Paralympic Games Hopeful
ST. LOUIS — The Paralympic Games are more than just a sporting event – they offer a unique opportunity to shine a spotlight on sport and disability, inspire individuals, bring about social change, and promote inclusive professional and sports opportunities for people with disabilities.
Paralympic hopeful Sarah Adam, OTD, assistant professor of occupational science and occupational therapy at Saint Louis University (SLU), is projected to become the first woman to compete for a USA Wheelchair Rugby team at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris.
Sarah Adam, OTD, (second from left in the back row), with members of the 2022 USA Wheelchair Rugby Training Squad. Photo by Lakeshore Foundation.
“This is a huge opportunity to be a part of the disability sport movement that continues to grow in the US and around the world,” Adams said. “I know that my background in OT, role as a professor at SLU, and research in adaptive sports and exercise provides me with a unique voice to use in these platforms.”
Adams studies enhancing independence and participation of individuals with disabilities through community-based exercise and adaptive sports. She has collaborated with the adaptive health and wellness center to collect and analyze data to show the benefits of adaptive sport and exercise for adults with disability.
Adam was named to the 2022 USA Wheelchair Rugby Training Squad and is part of an elite team that has been competing to earn a spot at the Paris 2024 Games set to take place over 12 days from Aug. 28 to Sept. 8, bringing together 4,400 of the world’s most outstanding Paralympic athletes.
An estimated 1.3 billion people, or about 16% of the global population, live with some form of disability. People with disabilities face discrimination in all walks of life: education, health care, labor, and community life, which includes access to participation in sport. Though Adams is seeing more adaptive sports being represented in the mainstream media and is defining her place in the movement.
Adams hopes that a documentary about her team’s journey to the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris next summer will help bring more attention to Wheelchair Rugby and the benefits of adaptive sports in general.
Participation in sport is proven to be incredibly beneficial both physically and mentally; however, this study demonstrated that there is a lack of widespread awareness among many people with disabilities about what adaptive sport is and how they can participate in it. While often used interchangeably with inclusive sport, adaptive sport allows modifications to make the game more accessible, compared with the similar inclusive sport, which permits athletes with disabilities to compete with non-disabled athletes.
As a graduate student, Adam had a unique introduction to the sport as an able-bodied volunteer at the Disabled Athlete Sports Association (DASA) in 2013. Adam was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a year later after noticing difficulty walking, gripping items, numbness in her hands, and bouts of fatigue. She began playing wheelchair rugby recreationally in 2017 and competitively in 2019.
“In my mind, everyone can connect to sports in some way and that makes adaptive sport a great tool for breaking down some of the stereotypes and misconceptions about people with disabilities,” she said.
Latest Newslink
- Pestellos Honored With Honorary Street NameA stretch of Laclede Avenue that has undergone major development since President Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D., and First Lady Fran Pestello, Ph.D., arrived at Saint Louis University 11 years ago now has a new name.
- Disaster Assistance Center Opens to the Community in Response to the May 16 TornadoThe City of St. Louis, in partnership with the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency and Saint Louis University, opened a Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) on Monday, June 9, to serve as a central space for tornado-affected residents to connect with agencies offering guidance, resources, and assistance related to recovery and long-term support. The DAC will take place inside Chaifetz Arena.
- St. Louis Magazine Salutes SLU's Top Nursing EducatorsFour nursing educators in Saint Louis University's Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing have been honored with a St. Louis Magazine's 2025 Excellence in Nursing Award. This recognition underscores the dedication and leadership of SLU's nurse educators in advancing the profession and shaping the future of health care.
- University Trustees, Student Leaders Honor Pestello LegacyFred P. Pestello, Ph.D., has been named president emeritus, effective July 1, and the Student Government Association has launched a new scholarship in honor of Pestello and his spouse, Fran Pestello, Ph.D.
- William S. Sly, M.D.: 1932-2025William S. Sly, M.D., professor emeritus of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, died Saturday, May 31, 2025. He was 92. An alumnus of Saint Louis University, Sly was an internationally known physician and scientist. He is perhaps best known for his work on the disease that now bears his name - Sly syndrome, also called mucopolysaccharidosis type VII (MPS-VII). His research team described the first patient with the disease, and later he helped develop an FDA-approved treatment.
- SLU Professor Says Statistics Is the Everyday Math Everyone Needs to KnowR. Lauren Miller, Ed.D., assistant professor of mathematics and statistics at Saint Louis University, argues that a solid foundation in statistics provides people with numerical literacy and reduces math anxiety. Miller will present “A Case for High School Statistics” at the Curiosity by TEDx St. Louis event on Saturday, May 31, at the Missouri History Museum.
