‘Pretty cool achievement’: Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson reveals his amazing Paralympic goal ahead of Paris games
Cairns Paralympian, Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson is out to make history on home soil.
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Swimming saved Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson’s life.
The Cairns Paralympian knows his “one in a million” diagnosis is a jail sentence for some.
Diastrophic dysplasia affects a person’s cartilage and bone development, stunting their growth in the process.
Fused fingers, curved spines and clubfoot can limit people living with the rare genetic disorder’s mobility.
Leading a normal life is almost impossible.
But not for Scooter.
He mows his lawn on the weekend, drives a car, plays with his dogs and takes his boat out when the weather’s fine.
It all may have never happened though if close mate Herbie Howard hadn’t urged Scooter to jump in the pool back in 2007.
The sport strengthened his muscles and dramatically improved his quality of life.
Now, Herbie is his coach and Scooter hasn’t stopped swimming, claiming two medals at the Tokyo Games along the way.
Never one to aim low, Scooter is out to make history on home soil.
But you may have to wait a while before it happens.
Reporter Samuel Davis dived in to learn more about the star athlete’s big plans.
Scoot, you want to share some big news but let’s start with what’s next. What does the road to the Paris Paralympics look like for you?
I’ve just completed camp in Canberra (last month) and then I start training for the World Para Series in Melbourne which is in early February. Then in early April, I head to Portugal for an international meet.
Paralympic qualifiers are in June in Brisbane but I need to go to these meets to tune up a little bit.
There’s also a new International Paralympic Committee rule that you have to compete overseas a year out before the Paralympics.
That’s why I’m off to Madeira in April.
How’s the body feel?
The body feels old but mentally I feel great.
I was talking to a sports psychologist and reflecting on how I’m a senior athlete now.
I work full-time, train full-time and then on the weekend try to enjoy myself.
Over the years, I’ve gotten better at managing my time and my mindset.
In the past, after work if I’d had a bad day, I might have said to (coach) Herbie (Howard), ‘Mate, I’m tired as hell. I had some difficult customers’ and came in with the wrong attitude. But these days before I walk into the pool I try to change my mindset to a positive one and it really helps me.
It’s like an AFL team. If everyone’s pissed off with each other you’re not going to play well. The same goes for me.
What’s your training schedule like these days?
I do seven pool sessions and two gym sessions a week and then see a physio once a month, if I need it.
The gym was a revelation for me. I started in 2016.
My Monday session is more upper body and then later in the week I do my legs. I’m still learning new things about my body.
How has the gym helped your quality of life outside of the pool?
It’s allowed me to do certain things I couldn’t do before.
Climbing up into my boat is a piece of piss these days because I’ve got more upper body strength.
I can start the whipper snipper on my own and do the lawn.
If I didn’t go to the gym and swim I wouldn’t be able to do any of those things.
You’ve met other people with diastrophic dysplasia who really struggle to enjoy a good quality of life. Do you think you’ve become a case study for how you can live with the genetic disorder and thrive?
Yeah, I do. I’m in contact with a few families who have little kids like me.
I just give them my life experience and not tell them what to do.
But my advice is usually that little Jimmy doesn’t need to be in bubble wrap for the rest of his life.
It’s okay to throw them in the pool and let them play in the dirt.
They’ll be fine.
When you see that what you’re doing is improving the quality of life of other people, how does that feel? It might be a bigger achievement than any of your medals.
I see swimming as a stepping stone to inspire and motivate others in life.
I love meeting people like me and sharing my story with them. If it helps, that’s amazing.
I didn’t have anyone to look up to growing up.
Sometimes I call myself a ‘roll model’ because I wheel around on my scooter.
That gets a laugh.
What do you need to do to achieve that elusive gold medal in Paris?
I work full-time at a counter sales job which is taxing at times and when you knock off sometimes it’s hard to maintain your motivation.
Like I said to the sports psychologist, it’s about keeping up your motivation week-in-week-out. It’s easy to do it for a few days but you’ve got to sustain that energy.
The more consistent you are in making good choices, the more likely you are to achieve your goal.
I’m already working hard but I want to manage my time better. I’m talking to a dietitian to improve my energy levels in the pool.
That’s helping me already. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
You’ll be 35 at the Paris games but you’ve told me you want to swim beyond that. Do you want to put it out there what your plans are?
Yes. I want to compete at (the) Brisbane (Paralympics in 2032). I’ll be 43 by then.
It’d be a pretty cool achievement. That and winning a gold medal are big motivators.
You were so warmly embraced after the Tokyo Paralympics where you won a silver and bronze medal. You became a celebrity in your own right after that. What was that experience like?
I thought Channel 7 made us (athletes) look like rock stars. It was an amazing experience. But you’ve got to back track a bit.
I went to London in 2012 and missed out on a medal.
At Rio, I missed out on the games completely.
That pissed me off but I had two options. I could whinge and complain about the classification system.
The second option was to get in the gym, get back to work and try to make it.
I thought, ‘Imagine the story I could tell if that came true’.
It was 13 years in the making and I think people saw that I wasn’t an overnight success.
I’d been working for so long.
When you go through that, you learn so much more. You’re more humble. Some people thought I was just putting it on but it’s how I am with everyone.
I like to joke around and I think people like that. I let it all out and try to be open about everything. I can have a laugh at myself and try to be a fun, loving, caring dude and live life to the fullest.
Originally published as ‘Pretty cool achievement’: Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson reveals his amazing Paralympic goal ahead of Paris games
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