TTV: What has your journey to becoming a recipient of the Disability Sport and Recreation Victoria Kevin Coombs Lifetime Achievement Award been like? 

Danni: Kevin was such a great and important mentor to so many of us, and so a part of that for me was being introduced to the community which for me started with my injury in 1988. Thankfully, some of the first people I connected with were athletes and as an athlete before my injury this was a great pathway to empowerment and rehabilitation. People such as Uncle Kevin and Australian wheelchair basketball player Sandy Blythe showed me that although life was going to look different, it doesn’t mean that it can’t be as fulfilling and enjoyable. 

I always had people like that to look up to that were leading the way in how to push themselves and find the edges to excel. Part of that legacy for me is consistently finding ways to improve and better myself not only as an athlete but also as a human. 

TTV: How did you get to be where you are today? 

Danni: Like many people, especially if you have an acquired disability, I came from a background of playing a lot of sports such as tennis, and so I had a reasonable foundation in sport which is what I loved doing. When I had my injury, Sandy Blythe knew that sport was a very big part of my life and so in rehab, often the thing you’re being told is what you can’t do, which is constantly very disabling. Sandy, however, made sure to remind me what you can do, and despite having to make a few changes there is so much you can still do and add to your life.  

I played my first tournament 4 months after my injury at nationals which opened my eyes to how many people with disability were playing sport. I played my first Australian Open in January, and so within a year I was already ranked number 1 in Australia which was a really quick trajectory thanks to the people supporting me. We had no money around me or financial support and so my community has been really important in helping me to get to where I am now. 

After 30 years of tennis, I took on the new challenge of table tennis, which was incredible, and I was really taken by the diversity within this sport. When I look at the wheelchair participants, it is great to see so many older players competing at a prominent level, which just goes to show the longevity in this sport. I am really enjoying the challenge and the connection to community that this provides. 

TTV: Which people have been important in the process of building up to this award? 

Danni: My family first of all, as when you have an acquired injury that’s quite traumatic for yourself and your family. It took a lot for them to figure out what life was going to look like for myself and for our family.  

People like Sandy were also instrumental in helping to teach my family that life was going to be alright. He allowed them an opportunity to ask a tonne of questions and support me in the best way they could. Instead of wrapping me in cotton wool, they supported significant progress in my rehabilitation and sporting career. 

TTV: What has been your proudest accomplishment in Table Tennis? 

Danni: Lots of things, being able to represent Australia at a Paralympic level has been extraordinary as a very big honour. Tacking onto this co-captaincy in Rio and Tokyo, being the flag bearer at Tokyo were incredibly special moments. 

For me as an athlete, Nationals has been a really big highlight being able to win 5 gold medals. 

TTV: What does a day in your life as a Paralympian look like? 

Danni: For the first time in my life, I am a full-time athlete, which has been really empowering. I start each day with some meditation or yoga and then go about my morning routine. Following this I have my first session of the day, whether that's on the table or in the gym. I am constantly having to manage my diet and focus on what I am eating. In between sessions is recovery including chiropractors, osteo, acupuncture. Recovery is important as a high-performance athlete, so when I finish all sessions, I must make sure to stretch and relax the muscles. At the end of the day, I try to spend quality time with the people I love around me.  

TTV: What message would you like to leave for the younger generation who look up to you? 

Danni: It is a journey, and I think that we talk about you can’t be what you can’t see but sometimes you have to forge the way yourself. If you have a driving passion to do something or there is something you’re trying to explore don’t wait for someone else to do it. Find a way, surround yourself with good people who support you, but also push you and encourage you to get out of your comfort zone. Forget the way, find good people, and just keep working at it because it’s a long game.