After suffering a sudden spinal stroke when she was just eight-years-old, Ebony Stevenson had no idea she was about to embark on a journey that would send her to the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
The stroke left her paralysed from the waist down, but that didn’t stop the young Perth girl from completing years of rehabilitation and hard work.
She found her passion for wheelchair basketball after attending a para-sport ‘come and try’ night when she was 12, and just three years later, she was named the Western Australian Institute of Sport’s young athlete of the year.
Stevenson last week departed Perth to compete in the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, which start tomorrow, with a pair of secret weapons in her suitcase — two pairs of Converse shoes hand-painted for her by local Aboriginal artist Joanne Hill.
“This time eight years ago, I would have been just getting out of a daychair doing hours and hours of rehab, and now I’m representing Australia at one of the biggest benchmark events that we participate at,” the now 16-year-old said.
“I’m so, so excited to meet all the other Australian athletes, I’ve never been to an event where there are so many of us all supporting each other.
“I’ve had a calendar on the back of my door and I’ve marked off every single day since I made it, counting down to the Commonwealth Games because that was my goal. It was 339 days and now I’m in single digits, and it’s starting to feel unreal.”
Stevenson will represent Australia in the Wombat women’s 3x3 wheelchair basketball team, coached by former national league player Rob Pike. She will play alongside experienced Paralympian Hannah Dodd and fellow debutants Georgia-Munro Cook and Taishar Ovens.
She will also use the opportunity to show off her newly hand-painted hi-tops. The athlete is a proud owner of “probably over 35” pairs of ‘Cons’ and sent two pairs to be painted by family friend Hill to take to the Games.
“Playing wheelchair basketball, you don’t use your feet that much, so it doesn’t matter as much what shoes you wear ... I wanted a good pair of shoes, but I didn’t want them to be the same as everybody else’s,” she said.
“I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if I got a local artist to help me create a pair of shoes that I could go play with at the Commonwealth Games, and then they can also help me understand the story and meaning behind it.
“I just thought it would be special and I’d feel a lot of luck knowing I’m wearing shoes that have been designed by an Aboriginal artist.”
Hill created the artwork with a week’s notice, taking about 12 hours to paint each pair. She included special details such as Olympic rings and a saxophone, the instrument Stevenson also plays.
The baller will showcase her fresh kicks throughout the games, where she will continue fighting to bring wheelchair basketball out of the shadows.
“I’ve recognised young enough that para-sport isn’t about individual performance - it’s not like footy where it’s really popular and you get funding,” she said.
“Para-sport, at the moment, is about giving back and encouraging other young girls who have disabilities to get into the sport. I know that if I keep going and I keep promoting wheelchair basketball as much as possible, hopefully one day it will grow into something that’s a bit more stable.”
This isn’t the first time Stevenson has jetted across the world to compete on a main stage. After being selected in the Australian Gliders squad at 13, she played her first international tournament a year later. Last year, she won bronze at the inaugural 3x3 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship in South Africa.
The team had to overcome a funding dip after failing to qualify for the 2024 Paris Paralympics, but Stevenson is excited about the opportunity to continue growing para-sport at a global level.
“If you’d asked me a year ago what it meant to go to a Commonwealth Games, I would have said it’s an honour to represent my country and showcase what I’ve been able to achieve,” she said.
“But now, in para-sport we don’t have the coverage and the vision we need to get more people into the sport. So I think coming off the Commonwealth Games is more exciting because hopefully we get a great opportunity to give our sport some vision. It brings more exposure into the sport, which is so important.”
The Commonwealth Games start this Friday, when the Wombats will open their tournament against England. They will then face South Africa on Sunday and Canada on Monday, before merging the pools. The medal match will be held on July 29.
Next on Ebony’s list of things to tackle is the World Cup in September, which will determine the team’s world ranking heading into the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
She will also be representing WA with the Perth Wheelcats 3x3 competition on August 8 and 9 at Bendat Basketball Centre, with free public access.
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