A person needs only to spend a few moments with Angie Malone and her contagiously radiant smile and happy demeanor to find themselves grinning. In fact, this perennially cheerful aspect of her personality is just one contributing factor to her success as one of the world’s top wheelchair curlers. She may always be ready to share a laugh or smile, but make no mistake – Angie Malone is a serious athlete.
Malone found herself making history in 2006 when she was a member of Great Britain’s Wheelchair Curling team at the Winter Paralympics in Turin, Italy. That year was Wheelchair Curling’s debut at the Paralympics, where she and her teammates won the Silver medal. Even before that history-making game, Malone was a world champion in Wheelchair Curling, having won two gold medals at the 2004 and 2005 World Wheelchair Curling Championship Games.
Angie Malone knows that an athlete doesn’t become a champion overnight. She understands that “sporting success requires hard work; discipline and focus; [and] the ability to adapt, plan, and goal set.” As Malone has experienced on a very personal level, these champion traits extend beyond the world of sport. In 2008 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Before treatment began Malone stayed on as her role of skip for her teams, and they won the 2008 Scottish and British Wheelchair Curling Championships.
To combat her illness, Malone began intensive chemotherapy treatment followed by a mastectomy. While she was focusing on her health, she had to miss the 2008 and 2009 World Wheelchair Curling Championships. Nevertheless, Malone still served her team by maintaining close contact with them and encouraging them to “train hard, train smart, and win games.”
After she had recovered from her surgery, Malone set forth on a plan to once again compete in Wheelchair Curling. Following a strict fitness regime that balanced with her continued chemotherapy treatment, Malone trained to regain her physical strength and compete in the 2010 Winter Paralympic Games in Vancouver. Her diligence and hard work paid off as she was able to once again compete with team Great Britain, which placed sixth overall in the sport.
ANGIE MALONE IS DEDICATED TO HER COMMUNITY
When sharing her own experiences in sport, Angie Malone is quick to acknowledge her community of support. She understands deeply the positive impact a strong, supportive community can have on a person’s success in life and sport, and so it is no surprise she has positioned herself as a strong role model in the world of parasport and wheelchair curling.
Angie Malone volunteers with the Braehead Wheelchair Curling Club, where she is able to share her love of the sport with new wheelchair curlers and help them understand the game. As a “School Champion” Angie visits local schools teaching them about Wheelchair Curling and imparting her own values of determination, hard work, and focus, inspiring the young students to achieve their own goals. She furthers her positive impact by serving as a Patron of “Ayrshire Sportsability,” a charity that employs sport a means to support and inspire young people with a disability. Many of her fellow wheelchair curlers respect Malone as a mentor. In 2014 and 2015, she spent countless hours with a developing athlete as he trained to hopefully be selected to the Scottish team for the 2015 World Championship. The apprentice athlete, Hugh Nibloe, was successful in making his international debut at the world championship.
Angie Malone is a way shower. She models the qualities of an exemplary athlete and gives of herself and her time to the members of her curling club, youth in her community, and people with disabilities. Her outlook on life is certainly one to be admired, and we are so glad she shares it with the world!
Thank you to the Royal Caledonian Curling Club and the World Curling Federation for nominating Angie Malone for our 2015 Athletes in Excellence Award.
Watch her acceptance video here:
Curious about Wheelchair Curling? Check out the Bronze Medal game between Great Britain and China during the 2014 Winter Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia (spoiler: Team Great Britain wins!)
ANGIE MALONE’S ATHLETIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS
- 2004 – World Wheelchair Curling Championship – Sursee, Switzerland – Gold Medal
- 2005 – World Wheelchair Curling Championship – Glasgow, Scotland – Gold Medal
- 2007 – World Wheelchair Curling Championship – Sollefte, Sweden – Bronze Medal
- 2011 – World Wheelchair Curling Championship – Prague, Czech Republic – Silver Medal
- 2006 – Paralympic Winter Games – Pinerolo, Italy – Silver Medal
- 2014 – Paralympic Winter Games – Sochi, Russia – Bronze Medal
