JANA Saysunee

Classification
B (IWAS, 08 Apr 2021)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (thaizer.com, 06 Sep 2012)

Impairment Details
In 1991 she was involved in a motorcycle accident that left her with a fractured skull and a broken back and lost the use of her legs. (thaizer.com, 06 Sep 2012)

General
TOUGH TIMES
She says she struggled with her mental health following her accident in 1991. She struggled to cope with her impairment and the cost of the medical expenses left her family in financial trouble. She later attended a government-run institute for people with impairments, where she was introduced to a number of different Para sports. "I could not provide for my family, I did not get out of the house and I was frustrated about not even being able to get out of my wheelchair. My family, although poor, cared for me and gave me so much encouragement. I received the warmth and comfort of my family and they gave me the ability to live and go on." (paralympic.org, 27 Sep 2019; thaizer.com, 06 Sep 2012; unescobkk.org, 28 Dec 2012)

FAVOURITE DISCIPLINE
She prefers competing in epee events. "Epee is my main weapon. I do also compete in sabre and foil, but epee comes naturally. Foil and sabre are too difficult for me." (paralympic.org, 27 Sep 2019)

WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL TO WHEELCHAIR FENCING
She initially took up wheelchair basketball before switching to wheelchair fencing. "Wheelchair basketball was very difficult. We shot at the same height as the able-bodied players. It was hard. But I kept telling myself, 'We have to get it in, we have to shoot'. Also, I wanted to have a good salary. And then we finally made the team to represent our district to compete in Bangkok. The athlete life became very exhausting. But then I saw an open letter about a wheelchair fencing course with a coach from Hong Kong. After completing the seven-day course, the coach called me and another friend and said, 'Remember, you will have a chance to become the world champion in wheelchair fencing'. I remember the coach told me to hit a target 1000 times a day. A friend who could not stand it said it was extremely boring and tried to convince me to go back to playing basketball, but I kept on hitting it until the coach asked me to stop." (posttoday.com, 17 Mar 2019)

PREVIOUS OCCUPATION
She previously worked as a computer course instructor for people with impairments in Thailand. "A hope sparked when a vocational rehabilitation centre in Chiang Mai accepted applications for impaired people. A Thai tennis player advised us that studying in computers would make it easier to find work. Previously I felt that my dream was over [after the accident]. I loved teaching so much that I dreamed of becoming one. I was still teaching computers for people with impairments [when she took part in her first international wheelchair fencing tournament in 1999]." (posttoday.com, 17 Mar 2019)