After receiving his doctorate a mere two months ago, Kelowna’s Rob Shaw is off to Tokyo to compete for another title.
Shaw came to the Okanagan in 2016 as a doctoral student studying the impact of peer mentorship on people with spinal cord injuries. He was also training full time to compete in Tokyo as a Paralympic athlete while finishing his doctorate at UBCO’s School of Health and Exercise Sciences.
“I’m used to balancing my studies with training. However, this last year was intense and unusual because but I was working toward two huge milestones — honing my body and mind — at the same time,” Shaw said.
He will be competing in the singles wheelchair tennis event starting on Friday, Aug. 27. After his four national quad singles championships, he’s feeling pretty good about his chances in Tokyo.
“I’ve worked hard to reach this goal. Representing Canada in the Paralympics is an honour and a dream come true,” he says.
To find out more about Shaw’s research, visit: ok.ubc.ca/okanagan-stories/game-changers
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