The Rise. The Recognition. The Game. The Story.

This July to celebrate disability pride The Rookie Reporters will be introducing a new storyline and a new chapter for para athletes to have their story told it will be called “THE RISE. THE RECOGNITION. THE GAME. THE STORY.” Campaign which is dedicated to share the voices, experiences, and journeys of athletes whose stories too often go untold.

Image Description: Large text outlined in blue saying THE RISE. THE RECOGNITION. THE GAME. THE STORY. And dark blue text saying THE ROOKIE REPORTERS, a blue circle that says TRR in the middle at the top the rookie and the bottom reporters 

As disabled athletes continue to break records , inspire people and redefine what is possible in sports yet outside of major competitions many of their stories receive little to no media attention and this is why we aim to change that in this campaign we aim to create a space where athletes can tell their stories as we hope to increase visibility, challenge misconceptions and to mainly challenge the diversity of experiences within disability sport 

This campaign is not about results, medals and rankings its about people behind the performances sharing their setbacks , friendships , ups and downs ,routine and the joy of their sport 

Throughout This Campaign You Should Expect

In-depth athlete interviews, written articles, video content across social media and youtube and lots of conversation about disability sport.

The Meaning Behind The Name

The rise = YOUR story 

The recognition = visibility and respect 

The game = your sport 

The story = you as an individual

Together these all represent the heart of the campaign 

Looking Ahead 

This is only the beginning 

The goal is not to only celebrate disabled athletes during disability pride month but to make this a long term conversation about inclusion, representation and visibility in sport 

By listening to athletes, sharing their stories and making their voices heard we can help ensure their stories are recognised not just for a month but all year round 

Getting Involved 

If you are a disabled athlete, supporter, organisation or know anyone who'd like to be involved we'd love to work with you! 

Please fill out this form https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdS_Di5hiqF7mrN019y_IWQ3kS-nPqxWk2LOau_SZDuV6cE5w/viewform?usp=header and we will be in touch!

Because every athlete deserves to be heard, every game deserves an audience, and every story deserves the spotlight.

Article Written by  Nailah Gajia