Paralympic Advocate on a Mission to Empower Zambians with Disabilities

Raised by her aunt in Zambia, Chipasha grew up alongside her cousin who was born with physical disabilities and loved lifting weights. Chipasha would help him load weights onto the bar and eventually, helped him transform into a prominent Paralympian in Zambia. Through this hands-on experience, Chipasha developed a passion for adaptive sports and went on to work as an administrative officer for the National Paralympic Committee of Zambia. But Chipasha immediately saw the lack of equipment, awareness, and infrastructure para-athletes face when pursuing sport and is on a mission to change it.

Now, in her role, Chipasha aims to use Paralympic sports as tools to empower persons with disabilities in Zambia and to change perceptions about disabilities. For GSMP: Sport for Community 2019, Chipasha will be mentored by Stephanie Kanter, Business Support Manager, and her team at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago, IL.