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When Paralympic athlete Ellie Cole lost a leg due to cancer at the age of three, there was no role model like her. This is why she is proud to be the face of this new Woolworths collection.
As a young child, Australian swimmer Allie Cole-a six-time gold medalist and 15 Paralympic medalist-didn’t know that sport was the choice for people with disabilities.
After losing her right leg to cancer at the age of three, the 29-year-old is proud of her disability and her role in normalizing differences.
Cole’s is one of the Olympic and Paralympic hero images used to promote Wednesday (July 14) Woolworths and the Royal Australian Mint’s $2 limited edition themed coin.
There are a total of 12 million U.S. dollars worth of 2 U.S. dollars—each coin has one of six unique Olympic and Paralympic inspired designs—that customers can collect through Woolworths cash registers, or they can be purchased in-store for $15 Collect collector’s albums and buy them together.
Cole said that a recent photo of 7-year-old Mia Stewart made her realize how far Australia has come in accepting disability. She suffered from a rare congenital limb difference after birth, called a focal proximal femoral defect.
The photo shared on Mia’s Instagram page saw her standing in front of Cole’s image with the text: “Representation is important!! You don’t know how excited Mia was when she saw @elliecoleswim at @woolworths_au today! “Mummy , Her legs are the same as mine! “She is so excited! Good luck to Allie Tokyo.”
“It really touched my heartstrings,” Cole said. “When I was as old as her, I didn’t have any role models for the Paralympics. I didn’t even know that disabled people could participate in sports.
“Australia is moving in the right direction in terms of inclusiveness, which makes me happy, and I think it is very important.
“I think the Paralympic Games are one of the biggest platforms in the world to change the minds of a few people. This is usually difficult to do.”
Cole will fly to Tokyo on August 18 to participate in her fourth Paralympic Games, and this day is not fast enough for many people.
“Postponing the Olympics is a huge challenge,” she said. “I remember entering our six-week confinement period last year. I was at a crossroads. Am I going to move on or just pulling a pin here?
“I quickly realized how much I like swimming, how much I like this sport, how much I want to go to Tokyo. Every athlete who makes up this team has the same understanding, and that is that going to Tokyo is very important for them. .
“This is a bit like the story of survivors, because all Paralympic athletes have to experience something they had to survive before, and then they also have to survive their sports career, so they will become very strong and resilient athletes. .”
Woolworths Chief Marketing Officer Andrew Hicks said that the two-dollar coin symbolizes the country’s passion for supporting sports.
“We have long been celebrating Australia’s rich sports history with our customers, and these coins are another good way to show their support for them when they win gold for the Australian Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo,” Mr Hicks said.
Leigh Gordon, CEO of the Royal Australian Mint, said that these coins help tell the story of Australia through iconic sports events such as the Tokyo Olympics.
“We made this series to hope that all Australians will unite and support our athletes and team’s journey to Tokyo and other places,” he said.
Customers will also be invited to donate to the Australian Paralympic Games at the Woolworths store.
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