Shelley Matheson first played wheelchair basketball for Australia when she was 17, but after having two children she thought she’d retired for good.

The three-time Paralympic medallist had been playing for Australia for 18 years when she took a break in 2019.

“I had been away for five years, and I had no intention of going back after I had the kids,” the now 39-year-old said.

But an opportunity to play in the Women’s National Wheelchair Basketball League in 2023, just a year after her second child Hazel was born, revived her innate competitiveness.

“[It was] the first time my kids had seen wheelchair basketball, I get emotional talking about it, but just seeing them in the community with the people I’ve grown up with was unreal,” she said.

Matheson then signed herself and best friend Bridie Kean — who captained the team at the London Paralympics — up for the Gliders development program, which provides different pathways for team selection.

They went to training camp and returned to the court for Australia in January this year for the Asian Oceanic Championships.

But she said funding shortfalls had left the women’s game in Australia “decimated”.

The road to Paris ended in Japan

With Paris in sight, Matheson was among those seeking to qualify for the Paralympics via the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation Women’s Repechage against Japan in Osaka in late April.

Despite their best efforts, the Gliders failed in the finals against the more experienced Japanese team, losing 26-50.

“Unfortunately we didn’t qualify,” Matheson said.

Matheson said the team didn’t get the support it needed to make the Paralympics.

“The women’s program in Australia for wheelchair basketball has just been decimated, probably over the last 10 years since we didn’t qualify for Rio, so it was a really big disappointment,” she said.

Basketball Australia declined to comment for this story.

In June, the federal government announced a record $54.9 million in funding for Paralympic sport to address “systemic and structural barriers to performance for para-athletes that had been ignored for too long”.

Paralympics Australia president Alison Creagh said the money was essential.

“Since 2000, Australia’s investment in para-sport has fallen well behind many of our rivals, allowing them to catch up,” she said.

“This funding marks a much-needed reset, positioning Australia to regain its competitive edge in time for the Paralympic Games in 2028 and our Games at home in 2032.”

Guiding the Gliders back to greatness

Matheson said she had no idea how hard it would be coming back after two babies, but being back in her community and supporting her younger teammates was a driving factor.

“I have a particular set of skills that are invaluable and it’s a point guard role, I can control the tempo and the way I read the game, from my time at the University of Illinois, I do feel like I almost have a degree in wheelchair basketball,” she said.

“Obviously watching the Opals and Lauren Jackson, I’m thinking she’s got four years on me [in age], maybe I do have another four years? I really don’t know.”

Laura Davoli is one of the Gliders’ up-and-coming players, first selected for the national women’s team in 2023 after a couple of years playing with the Devils, the under-25 squad.

Davoli admitted to being nervous going into the Japanese tournament, having only had four months to recover from a hip replacement.

“Also nervous because I had been brought back into the Gliders to obviously help the team get to that ultimate goal of Paris, and we just we didn’t get there,” she said.

“When I’ve processed it, I thought I don’t think I really know what I’ve lost because I’ve never really had that [Paralympics] opportunity.

Changing perspectives on disability

Like Matheson, Davoli has found the friendship and understanding of her teammates fuel her drive to continue competing.

“Coming into the Gliders and into disability sport changed my perspective on living as somebody with a disability in the best way,” Davoli said.

“Just having a community with people who are all in the same boat as you … I can’t really describe how impactful it’s been.”

She believes the culture and knowledge that experienced players like Matheson brought into the team was invaluable.

“I feel like I learned so much from them, on and off the court, and just about the game in general,” she said.

Davoli said the Gliders are now looking long-term towards the 2026 World Championships in Canada, the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics, and then Brisbane 2032.

While Matheson said she was still part of the Gliders program, she was uncertain what her participation would look like in the future.