By India Bailey
If you're ever doubting your ability to achieve your dreams, then look towards Scout Bassett: she is the living embodiment of triumph against insurmountable odds.
Scout is a Paralympian 400m world record-holder in athletics; the author of 'Lucky Girl' – a book where she shares ten insights gleaned from having faced some of life's toughest challenges – and was recently appointed President of the Women's Sports Foundation. Her dedication to championing equality in sports, especially for athletes with disabilities, highlights her steadfast commitment to forging paths for generations to come. But more than anything, she's quite simply a remarkable person whose story will inspire you to grab life by the horns.
As an infant, Scout was taken to an orphanage in Nanjing, China, after losing her leg in a chemical fire. It was there that she spent the majority of her childhood. To say she was denied the basic joys of childhood would be an understatement. She recalled how her days were spent indoors, often doing chores, and never venturing outside. The outdoor playground was used to hang laundry out rather than to play in. But at seven years old the course of her life changed dramatically, when she was adopted by an American family and brought to the small town of Harbor Springs, Michigan – population 1,274.
"I could count on one hand, the number of people that were of colour or minorities," Bassett says. "I was also raised in a Caucasian family, where my parents were not athletic in any way."
Scout Bassett: It was obviously quite a challenge. One thing I really struggled with was not speaking any English and coming in with a pretty intense backstory and experience. I really struggled to fit in (my school has about ten kids in my class). By the time I got to second grade, I remember hearing kids come to school and talk about doing "youth sports". I didn't know anything about it, but I remember going home and telling my parents that whatever they were doing, I wanted to be part of that. That's how it all began. I signed up for my first sport, which was soccer – I would have been about nine at the time, but sat on the sidelines and the bench throughout almost my entire childhood.
"This had a huge effect on my self-confidence, and the way that I looked at people with disabilities. I would say to myself: 'Is this ever going to feel normal?' Obviously I didn't have people to relate to from either a disability standpoint or from being Asian – there was a lot of loneliness in those moments. But it's also in those places that you build the most resilience and learn the most about yourself."
SB: I signed up for a sport every season of every year, but it wasn't until I found running that I experienced a major turning point in my journey. Sports prosthetics only fully came to market in the early 2000s. When I was 14, I got my first running prosthetic. But I'd never seen one before because unlike today you just didn't see athletes with blades in magazines or on TV. I remember seeing this carbon fibre C-shape and not wanting it. I had always been able to get by with an everyday walking prosthetic, and you could always cover the leg with a cosmetic cover to make it look like an anatomical limb. I sort of hid behind that, just to seem like I was less different.
"My first thought wasn't, 'Oh my gosh, how fast am I going to be able to run?' My first thought was, 'I can't make that look like an anatomical limb'. It was total panic and fear that set it. The first time I ever ran, I started to feel like all the chains that had held me down as a young girl were lifted. It took me 14 years to realise that I would make it in this life. That's really how powerful running was for me. Most people really can't contextualise not ever running until you're 14. To wait that long and to have this gift was really life changing – it's like, nobody can stop me now, nobody can hold me back."
SB: I'd never be where I am in my life now without coaches. In my junior year of high school I had a coach that included me. Before that, many teams or coaches said no or didn't let me play. I expressed all that to her and she said:
"As long as you're on this team, you will have a spot and you will play every game."
SB: With my story, there've been a lot of setbacks and disappointments – I would even say failures – along the way, where I could have given up.
"The real triumph in my journey has been just to continue to push forward, because nobody likes to be in a space of discomfort. You never really see the reward unless you're willing to walk through challenging seasons of life. I really just want to encourage people who are going through those seasons of darkness to keep working; to keep pushing; to keep believing."
SB: I'll be vulnerable and transparent in saying: I'm still learning about this. I'm still trying to figure things out when it comes to mental health and developing mental fortitude, and I think that's a journey which isn't always linear.
"Sometimes you regress before you progress. Sometimes, you hit success and it's so fleeting and it's just momentary. If you don't continue to work on the skills of being healthy mind, body, spirit when you face those struggles, it's going to be very challenging."
SB: My favourite running shoe is the Pegasus. It's light, it's comfortable, and it's actually a great shoe even for lifting at the gym. As for outfits: it's funny, because it really depends on how I'm feeling when I wake up that day. I love matching stuff – which definitely helps me pack! My current favourite tights are the Nike Universa, they're like medi support, which is great as a track athlete.
SB: The 2017 world record was something we were aiming for because we knew it was doable.
"It was just such an incredible feeling – we smashed the previous one, and to this day it holds."
As for gold at the Parapan American Games, it was just as amazing. I don't think anybody expected me to come first, myself included. I knew that I'd been performing really, really well leading up to that. But it was just one of those moments everything aligned at the perfect time. The dream scenario.
SB: I took a big risk coming to Toronto, where I am now and working under a different Paralympic program and coach. It's come with its own challenges, but one thing's for sure: when the trials come around in July, there'll be no doubt whether or not we've done everything possible. I think as an athlete, that's all you can ask of yourself and of the people you surround yourself with.
SB: One of the struggles we have in Paralympics is that there are now fewer women than men that compete in track and field. As a result, Paralympics have consolidated the events and put groupings of women together. Unfortunately when you do that, you don't always create an event that's on a level playing field. It would be like if you were to run a 100m race and you were missing your leg, but the person next to you is missing an arm. Well, we know that in a running event, missing the leg is a bigger impairment than missing an arm, right?
"I'm 4'9" and don't even weigh 40kg, so in a heat where there are much taller and bigger competitors, it's a real challenge. It's sort of a David versus Goliath scenario. But I can't change the body that I've been given. I really am just trying to make the most of what I can do. I pride myself in that work ethic, because we'd never be competitive if we just relied on our talent or our physical build."
SB: In January I began my term as the President of the Women's Sports Foundation, and it's our 50th anniversary this year. I'm the first Asian president that the organisation has ever had. That's something that means a lot to me, especially because when we look at the space of sport, there's not a lot of Asian heroes. Part of why I accepted the role is I wanted to see the organisation take on more Paralympic athletes and really champion them.
"I think we've had a very successful fight in our country for women's sports in terms of equality and equal pay. There's been so much progress, but we really haven't seen that for athletes with disabilities. These are athletes that are equally as impressive and accomplished and incredible."
We're really fighting for athletes with disabilities earning scholarships to go to college; to play collegiate sports; to receive equal funding. Last year we launched the Scout Bassett Fund, with the help of Nike. We've partnered with the Women's Sports Foundation to distribute grants – we want to fund and develop a pipeline of women with disabilities that are on the Paralympic path. Nike was my first ever sponsor, and before I was signed I was living out of my car. Most Paralympic athletes are still not able to do this professionally, so that's really what the Scout Bassett Fund is for.
The journey Scout's been on exemplifies the transformative power of perspective and mental fortitude, something most athletes and Paralympic athletes must possess to compete successfully. However, her gift is her attitude; making the strongest mark in this life, with the tools she's had available to her.
Scout was one of the most remarkably positive people I've ever met. As she prepares for the Paris Paralympic Games, her story shines like a torch of inspiration for all those facing adversity. From her challenging beginnings, to becoming a world record holder and undoubtedly making lasting change with her work as the President of the Women's Sports Foundation: Scout is the true definition of a champion.
