Invictus Games changed her life
Injured veteran Kelly Scanlan found new motivation after deciding to compete
When Kelly Scanlan first signed up for Invictus Games after serving in Afghanistan, she didn’t realize the sporting event for wounded soldiers would pull her out of years of physical and mental injuries.
Scanlan first joined the Canadian Forces at 16 and started training to deploy to Afghanistan at 18. During her training, she suffered her first injury, a completely torn ligament in her leg. She decided to push through the pain and deploy anyway and, at age 19, she left to spend eight months on tour as an infantry soldier in Afghanistan.
“Eventually, I stopped going to the doctors, because none of them seemed to have an answer for me,” Scanlan said. “I figured this was just how it was going to be and just powered through.”
But when she returned home, the injury had worsened. Because the tear changed how Scanlan moved entirely, it shifted the right side of her body out of alignment and meant that she would have to relearn how to walk properly. Doctors told her she might never fully recover.
Beyond the physical injury, coming back home after serving abroad was a tough transition.
“When you first come home, it’s a little strange because most of life is still the same,” Scanlan explained. “But there’s little changes here and there and you’re trying to find your place again.”
It was around that time that the mental effects of her situation started piling on and she started noticing days where she didn’t feel right.
The big change came when another wounded veteran convinced her to sign up for the Invictus Games.
The Games, founded by Prince Harry, were launched as a way to showcase the “unconquerable spirit” of wounded service personnel. More than 400 athletes from 13 countries attended the first Games held in London in 2014. This year, 550 athletes from 17 countries are competing in Toronto.
With regular training for road cycling, swimming and wheelchair tennis — Scanlan volunteered to join a doubles team even though she doesn’t use a wheelchair — she started to see massive changes in her life.
“The pain I was in was significantly reduced, I was sleeping better, I was feeling better, I was less anxious about things,” said Scanlan, who said her life took a complete turn for the better. “I started to be interested in things.”
The experience of fighting to become better fostered a sense of camaraderie, which is what makes the Invictus Games so special, she said.
Almost seven years after returning from Afghanistan, Scanlan said her life is proof that the battle to compete in Invictus Games can change lives. This summer, she was hired as a new recruit at her local fire department.
“The people who come out for the Olympics, they’re out to win. But with Invictus, a lot of us are looking at how far someone has come,” Scanlan said. “That may not equal a medal, but that’ll equal huge changes in their lives.”