Kendra Ohama

Kendra Ohama (January 6, 1965) is a Canadian retired wheelchair basketball player. As a member of Team Canada, she won three gold medals and one bronze during the Paralympic Games.

Kendra Ohama
Personal information
Born (1965-01-06) January 6, 1965
Brooks, Alberta, Canada
Height5'1
Sport
Country Canada
SportWheelchair basketball (1992–2012)
TeamCanada women's national wheelchair basketball team
Turned pro1991
Retired2012
Achievements and titles
Paralympic finals

Early life

Ohama was born in Brooks, Alberta on January 6, 1965.[1]

Career

After becoming paralyzed from the waist down at the age of 16 following a car accident, Ohama was approached a Calgary Grizzlies player in a store who convinced her to play the sport.[2] She was eventually invited to tryout for the Canada women's national wheelchair basketball team in 1989.[3] Ohama made her senior debut at the 1992 Summer Paralympics, where Team Canada won gold.[4] She also won gold at the 1996 and 2000 Paralympic Games and bronze at the 2004 Summer Paralympics.[1] Ohama was later named to Team Canada's roster for the 2008 Osaka Cup in Japan.[5]

In March 2011, Ohama was named to Team Canada's National Team to compete at the 2011 Parapan American Games.[6] Although the Calgary Rollers finished in third place, she was selected as a Tournament All-Star.[7] In June, Ohama was awarded a $5,000 Team Investors Group Amateur Athletes Fund bursary.[8] The next year, Ohama was selected to compete at the 2012 Summer Paralympics.[9] On December 22, 2012, Ohama announced her retirement from the Canadian women’s wheelchair basketball team.[10] After retiring, she became a goldsmith at a family-run business called "The Goldsmiths."[11]

References
  1. "Kendra Ohama". wheelchairbasketball.ca. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  2. Payne, Hailey (May 11, 2019). "Wheelchair 'ball proves to be slam dunk in Calgary". Calgary Journal. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  3. Mingo, Rita (April 1, 2008). "Canada targets Paralympic gold". Calgary Herald. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  4. Saper, Avi (June 20, 2012). "Wheelchair hoops team comes together". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  5. "Canada's national women's wheelchair basketball team to compete in Osaka Cup 2008 in Japan". paralympic.ca. February 11, 2008. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  6. "2011 Women's National Wheelchair Basketball Team Named". bcwbs.ca. March 8, 2011. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  7. "BC Breakers Finish 4th at 2011 Women's CWBL Finals". bcwbs.ca. May 18, 2011. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  8. "Kendra Ohama awarded 2011 Investors Group Amateur Athletes Fund Bursary". wheelchairbasketball.ca. 2011. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  9. "Canada Names Women's Wheelchair Basketball Team". paralympic.org. June 15, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  10. Hagen, Jefferson (December 22, 2012). "Calgary wheelchair basketball star announces retirement". Calgary Herald. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  11. Tucker, Gil (October 2, 2019). "Calgary goldsmith celebrates 50 years of success in an up-and-down economy". globalnews.ca. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
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