A lifetime of hard work and dedication will be put to the test from this Tuesday, as Tokyo's two-week Paralympic Games extravaganza gets underway.
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Overall there are six South Coast athletes, including Dalmeny's Nikki Ayers and Wallinga Park-based Emma Booth, competing at the 16th summer Paralympic Games, across a quintet of sports.
This is your complete guide to each of them, with full details on their events and when to watch.
The Olympics will be broadcast on Channel 7 and sister channels 7Mate and 7Two.
If that's not enough, every sport will be streamed live on 7Plus meaning fans won't miss a minute of the action.
All times listed below are AEST.
Cycling
Werri Beach's Amanda Reid will fly the South Coast flag at the Izu Velodrome.
This will be the 24-year-old's third Games, competing in the S14 100-metre breaststroke in London 2012 before transitioning to cycling ahead of Rio 2016.
Reid is the current world record holder in the 500-metre C2 time trial, clocking 38.918 in December 2020 in Brisbane.
Schedule:
Friday, August 27
- Women's C2 500-metre time trial final - 11am.
Equestrian
Shoalhaven's Victoria Davies and her own horse Celere will finally wear the green and gold at a Paralympics in Tokyo, after years of near-misses - including being forced to withdraw from Rio contention due to a neck diagnosis and caution from four neurosurgeons.
That and the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic couldn't stand in the way of Davies, who will spearhead Australia's four-person para-equestrian team - which includes Wallinga Park-based Emma Booth, and her Danish Warmblood horse Zidane, who will be competing at their second Games, after placing fifth in the mixed dressage individual championship and ninth in the team open with teammates Sharon Jarvis, Lisa Martin and Katie Umback at Rio.
Victora Davies' schedule:
Thursday, August 26
- Grade II individual dressage test - 5pm.
Saturday, August 28
- Grade II team dressage test to music - 6pm.
Monday, August 30
- Grade II individual dressage freestyle test - 9.14pm.
Emma Booth's schedule:
Friday, August 27
- Grade III individual dressage test - 5pm.
Sunday, August 29
- Grade III team dressage test to music - 9.15pm.
Monday, August 30
- Grade III individual dressage freestyle test - 8pm.
Rowing
Dalmeny's Nikki Ayers is set to have the biggest rowing races of her life in the PR3 mixed coxed four competition.
Her Paralympic debut is a huge achievement in her sporting career since a rugby union injury left her with no movement in her foot five years ago.
Her crew for the Sea Forest Waterway event is made up of two male rowers from Sydney and a female rower from Melbourne.
Schedule:
Friday, August 27
- PR3 mixed coxed four heats - 12.30pm.
Saturday, August 28
- PR3 mixed coxed four repechage heats - 12.30pm
Sunday, August 29
- PR3 mixed coxed four final - 12.50pm
Swimming
The South Coast's hopes hinge on Sussex Inlet's Jasmine Greenwood, who will be competing at her maiden Games in Tokyo.
The Shoalhaven High School student, who competed at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, will be aiming to build on her bronze medal from the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships
Schedule:
Saturday, August 28
- Women's S10 100-metre freestyle heats - 10.25am.
- Women's S10 100-metre freestyle final - 6.20pm.
Tuesday, August 31
- Women's S10 100-metre butterfly timed final - 8.07pm.
Thursday, September 2
- Women's S10 100-metre backstroke heats - 10.57am.
- Women's S10 100-metre backstroke final - 6.42pm.
Friday, September 3
- Women's S10 200-metre individual medley heats - 10.09am.
- Women's S10 200-metre individual medley final - 6.07pm.
Triathlon
After disappointingly missing out on the Rio Games, Nowra-born Jonathan Goerlach will finally make his Paralympics debut at the tender age of 38, when he lines up at the Odaiba Marine Park course.
The Bomaderry High alumnus, who will race alongside guide Dave Mainwaring, has been excelling on the world circuit for a number of years now, as shown by his fourth world PTVI ranking this season - in a hope of one day competing at a Paralympics.
Schedule:
Saturday, August 28
- Men's PTVI final - 9.30am.
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Courtney Ward
Sports Journalist for South Coast Register and Milton-Ulladulla Times, who loves all things sport and travel. All views are my own.
Sports Journalist for South Coast Register and Milton-Ulladulla Times, who loves all things sport and travel. All views are my own.
