Paralympian of the Year Madison de Rozario savages troll

Six time Paralympic medallist and Aussie superstar Madison de Rozario has not let a troll get away with a disgusting attempt at a joke.

Paralympic athletics queen Madison de Rozario has called out a social media troll after a disgusting social media comment after she was given Australia’s highest Paralympic honour.

On Thursday, two-time gold medallist de Rozario and snowboarder Ben Tudhope were named Australia’s Paralympians of the Year, just the fifth woman to win the honour since it was established in 1994.

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At her fourth Paralympics in Tokyo, De Rozario won gold in the marathon and 800m, as well as bronze in the 1500m, while also finishing fifth in the 5000m.

De Rozario is also a three-time world champion and won the 2021 New York City Marathon women’s wheelchair race, becoming the first Australian woman to achieve the result.

But despite being named one of the Paralympians of the Year, de Rozario hit out at a troll who tried to take some of the glitter off the award.

On 7 Sport’s Facebook page, a troll posted the insensitive: “What’s better thanks (sic) winning gold at the paralympics? Walking!”

Rather than blast the troll however, de Rozario replied with a post dripping in sarcasm: “I’ve actually done both! It’s definitely gold at the Paralympics. Great question — hope you’ve got more gems for us in the future. xx”

De Rozario developed transverse myelitis at the age of four, which is a disorder caused by the inflammation of the spinal cord and resulted in her ending up in a wheelchair.

She added on Instagram: “Men who think they’re funny but absolutely are not are my least favourite genre.”

The comment on the 7 Sport page was then deleted.

Madison de Rozario hits back. Photo: Instagram

Madi de Rozario, what a legend. Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images

An excellent response from one of our golden girls.

De Rozario was also named the 2020 Female Athlete of the Year along with her coach and Paralympic legend Louise Sauvage who was named the 2020 Coach of the Year.

She pair tribute to the Paralympic movement for how its helped Australians with disabilities.

“The Paralympics is the largest platform for people with disabilities and you want to do everything that you can with that platform,” de Rozario said.

“That is one of the incredible things that comes with being part of this Paralympic team. We prioritise the Paralympic movement and the impact it’s had on the 20 per cent of Australians with disabilities is unreal. Honestly, it’s a privilege to be part of that.”