Tait Jenkins is one of the brightest developing stars on the Australian boccia squad. Born with spinal muscular atrophy, Tait competes in the BC3 class using an assistance ramp and often comes face to face with his friend and fellow player, Daniel Michel.

Although he only took up boccia in 2011 as a way to meet new people and hopefully excel in a sport with no boundaries, he has found quick success with his keen eye, cool nerve and steady hand, leading him to victory at the 2012 and 2013 National Boccia Championships.

When Mecenzi Howard was born, no one thought she would live. Born with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy, Mecenzi suffered brain damage in the last few weeks before she was born and at four days old, went into respiratory arrest.

Thoughtful and considered are two words fellow athletes would use to describe Dean Nottle, whose goal in life is to be the best he can be.

The 60-year-old, who is passionate about living life to its fullest, developed a degenerative muscle disease later in life and in 2011, took up boccia as a way to be involved with sport where he wasn’t scoring or timekeeping.  

Since then, he has been training with New South Wales boccia coaches in Woy Woy on the state’s central coast and hopes to make his Australian debut soon.

Daniel Michel has only played boccia for a little while but his passion and determination in the sport is there for all to see. Having grown up loving and watching sport, especially cricket, discovering boccia changed this Sydney teenager’s life.

Born with spinal muscular atrophy, Daniel found it difficult to play most sports until he found boccia as a 15-year-old. Since then, he has competed at a number of state titles, experiencing victory in the 2013 Victorian State Titles, and hopes to one day compete at a Paralympic Games, with Rio 2016 firmly in his sights.

For 17-year-old Torita Isaac, athletics means everything. As one of Australia’s brightest sparks for the future, she is set to make her international debut on the world’s biggest stage at the London Paralympic Games.

Sarah Rose first competed in swimming in 2001 after being inspired by the Sydney Paralympic Games. She moved speedily through the ranks and made her Australian debut two years later at the Canadian National Championships.

It didn’t take long for Sarah to realise her Paralympic dream as she was selected in the Australian swimming team for the 2004 Games.

The Pymble resident emerged from Athens with a bronze medal in the 50m butterfly and stamped her authority with a series of sterling performances in the following years.

Jeremy McClure may have lost 98 per cent of his sight at the age of 15, but he did not lose his vision for inspiring young people.

The West Australian turned his disability into a passion for swimming and his immediate success in the pool received acclaim from those around him. In just his second year of competing for Australia, Jeremy was first selected in the swimming team for the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games.

He then reached his second consecutive Paralympic final in the 100m backstroke at Beijing 2008.

Young swimming prospect Reagan Wickens is running into form at just the right time, shaping as one to watch out for at London 2012.

Born with achondraplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes dwarfism, Reagan first made waves at the 2009 Australian Paralympic Youth Games, taking home five medals, including gold in the 100m breaststroke.

He has since gone from strength to strength and won all three of his events at the 2011 NSW Multi Class Championships as well as two gold and four silver medals at the 2011 Para-Pan Pacific Championships.

Bursting onto the scene at the 2009 Australian Short Course Championships, Aaron Rhind broke the world record in the 100m butterfly, cutting a whopping 3.41 seconds off the original record. He swam six personal best times at the event and has since gone from strength to strength. After dropping back to the S6 category for the 2011 Arafura Games, he picked up one silver and two bronze medals from a successful campaign in Darwin.

Swimmer Katrina Porter is not a fan of birds but that doesn’t mean she can’t fly. She won a gold medal and smashed the world record in the 100m backstroke at the 2008 Paralympic Games, living out a long held dream. The only female swimmer to win a gold medal at the Beijing Games, Katrina broke the world record in her heat before taking home first prize in the final. In 2009, Katrina received the Order of Australia Medal in recognition of her service to sport as a gold medallist.