LAM-WATSON Oliver

Classification
A (IWAS, 16 Aug 2021)

Origin of Impairment
Congenital (paralympics.org.uk, 30 Sep 2019)

Impairment Details
He was born with Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome, which affects the body's network of blood vessels. The condition prevents him from straightening or bearing weight on his left leg. (paralympics.org.uk, 30 Sep 2019)

General
IMPORTANCE OF LANGUAGE
He dislikes the broad definition of the word 'disabled', and says there needs to be more commonly used terms for different types of impairments. "The problem actually comes from the fact that there is one word, 'disability', which is an umbrella term for so many different types of people. Even 10 people with the same disability will have a different experience. And that's just with one when there are millions of disabilities ranging from physical impairments, to mental impairments, to invisible disabilities. Having one word that covers all of those things is so difficult because everyone is going to identify with that word, their disability and diagnosis in a different way. Some people feel that the word 'disability' has a negative connotation that comes with it by saying 'dis'-ability - it's a negative word. A term has recently been coined which is 'ableism' which I think is a bit clumsy. I personally identify as being disabled, and it took me a long time to identify as that, or actually want to identify as that. But especially being an athlete, I don't like the term 'disabled athlete'. I think 'adaptive athlete' is much better, because it's not less, it's different." (thelivelife.co.uk, 13 Apr 2021)

SHOE DESIGNER
In 2020 he was one of 20 people from London chosen by sportswear brand Nike to co-create a new trainer. He chose to base his design around his experiences growing up as a person with an impairment. "I gave my shoe the name 'At Odds' because it's about being at odds with society's stereotypes of the disabled while celebrating the fact that different is not less. They're white to signify society's unconscious and unfair bias towards the perfect and pristine. I also used fencing white which is something I am passionate about. The Nike swoosh is in blue to represent the disability blue badge, and I wanted it to stand out against the white, like disability standing out in contrast to society's perception. There's also the colour of orange on it, which is called 'rust', [which] is seen as imperfection and undesirable, and so I liked the idea of showing the imperfection and being proud of it. There's also an athletic gum sole, so the bottom has the traditional gum sole, so when you move, you see it. That's the idea of being seen through movement, creating change through sport." (thelivelife.co.uk, 13 Apr 2021; scope.org.uk, 11 Aug 2020)