'Cycling saved my life': Sask.'s Keely Shaw gearing up for 2nd Paralympics
Middale's Shaw was the only Paralympian or Olympian from Sask. to come home with a medal from the Tokyo Games
Growing up in Midale, Sask., Keely Shaw's life revolved around becoming an Olympic hockey player. But now, the 30-year-old is creating a name for herself in the world of Para cycling, and is headed to the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games this month.
At age 15, Shaw suffered a horse riding accident on her family farm that left her with partial paralysis on her left side. During her rehab, she had one thought: when would she be able to play hockey again?
"Sure enough, as soon as I got the go ahead, I went out and I started playing hockey again,'' Shaw said.
"But I really wasn't in love with the sport anymore, because I was constantly comparing myself to the athlete I used to be, even though I was in a completely different body now.''
Though she has regained about 70 per cent of her function since her accident in 2009, Shaw said understanding that her body couldn't perform the same way it could prior to her accident was hard for her as a teen. The frustration resulted in her suffering from an eating disorder.
Her life changed when a university classmate suggested she take up Para cycling.
WATCH | Keely Shaw gearing up for another big performance at the Paralympics:
"I have no hesitation in saying cycling saved my life,'' Shaw said.
"When I started cycling, I realized that I couldn't restrict my food and get on my bike. I couldn't restrict my food and perform what I needed to perform.
"And cycling was suddenly something that I cared more about than that voice in my head.''
'Made me feel like myself again'
Shaw entered her first road race in Moose Jaw in 2017.
"From the second I took the start line, it was like that hole in my heart that had been left by hockey was filled by a bike,'' Shaw said.
"Everything about it just made me feel like myself again. I started to feel like an athlete. I loved how strong, how co-ordinated, how confident I felt on the bike. I loved how much it pushed me physically, how much it pushed me mentally.''
Shaw has since excelled in the sport, with many strong international results, including a gold medal at the 2023 Parapan American Games, a silver medal at the 2023 World Track Championships and a bronze medal at the Tokyo Paralympic Games in track individual pursuit.
She was the only Paralympian or Olympian from Saskatchewan to win a medal at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
Midale Mayor Allan Hauglum said the entire town is proud of Shaw's Para cycling accomplishments.
"It shows the resilience in her and how determined she is," Hauglum said.
"It's an honour to have somebody on that high of a level, in the Paralympics, from your town. It doesn't happen to every community, so we're very proud of that."
Hauglum said banners with messages of support are being hung up at the local school, and the town of about 600 people plans to have watch parties for Shaw's races if she makes it to the finals.
Medal hopes for Paris
Shaw said in Paris, she's looking to better her bronze medal from the Tokyo Games. She said she's faster now than she was in 2021.
"You don't go to the Paralympics to participate. You don't go there just like, 'I'm just going to try my best.' You go there to win,'' Shaw said.
"But at the end of the day, if I put up a four-second personal best in my pursuit [event] and it ends me fourth or fifth, as much as I'm going to be heartbroken to not have been able to repeat my medal performance, sometimes you've got to find where the wins are.''
Shaw said she has worked hard to not have her entire life revolve around cycling, like it did with hockey.
"Instead of saying, 'Hi, I'm Keely, I'm a cyclist,' I can say 'Hi, I'm Keely. I'm a cyclist and I have a PhD, and you should see my dogs. They're awesome. And I have the cutest nieces and nephews,'" Shaw said.
Shaw will be teaching at the University of Calgary this fall as she completes her postdoctoral research in exercise physiology and nutrition, examining iron levels in female athletes. But she'll miss the first three classes of the fall semester because she'll be competing in Paris.
Shaw will be competing on the track on Aug. 29 and 30, before her road races on Sept. 4 and 6.
Representing Canada at the Paralympics for a second time means the world to her, she says.
"There are so many people across our country who, maybe they were born with a disability, maybe they acquired it, and … they can watch us and say, 'Hey, if they can do it, why can't I?''"
The 2024 Paralympic Games begin on Wednesday and continue until Sept. 8.
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