Susan
Seipel

No matter which way you cut it, Susan Seipel is a competitor.

For more than 20 years, she nurtured a dream of representing Australia at the Paralympic Games, and finally had that opportunity when Para-canoe made its debut at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

But Para-canoe was not Susan’s first choice. It wasn’t her second either. In fact, were it not for the financial strain of competing in Para-equestrian – a sport in which she had already won an international bronze medal – there’s every chance that Susan would never have picked up a paddle. Never have won three world titles. Or a Paralympic silver and bronze medal.

At the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, Susan was fresh off winning gold in the women’s va’a VL2 and bronze in the women’s kayak KL2 at the 2016 International Canoe Federation Para-canoe World Championships in Duisburg, Germany. She was in the form of her career, but with the va’a out for Rio, the kayak was Susan’s only shot.

And she delivered, carving her name in history as Australia’s first Paralympic medallist in Para-canoe.

At Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Susan delivered a spectacular performance in the inaugural va’a discipline, securing a silver medal in the women’s VL2 200m event in a time of 1:01.481. In the women’s KL2 200m event, she finished in 7^th position after crossing the line in 0:56.522.

Off the water, Susan enjoys playing Para-ice hockey, and crucially, is one of the people to have helped to get the sport up and running in Australia.