Caitlin McDermott, 17-years-old, made the trip to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs to try out for the USA Women’s National wheelchair basketball team. It was a long shot that she would make the team; most of the team is post-college age. She initially made the team as an alternate. But, shortly after, Caitlin got a call saying one of the players had dropped out and she would be travelling England to compete in the 2010 World Championships in July.
“When coach first told me, my mom talked to him and she was congratulating him on the fact that he finally got some emotion out of me, because I usually don’t show much excitement,”Caitlin said. “I was really excited to go. I knew there was a chance I could have gone, but I seriously wasn’t expecting it.”
Caitlin has been playing sports and traveling on teams for years. It wasn’t until a few years ago that she was involved in organizations just for individuals in wheelchairs. She is looking forward to playing in college.
“It boosts your self-confidence a lot,” she said. “Before wheelchair sports, I went to school, I came home from school and that was pretty much it. I didn’t know I could do a lot of this stuff.”