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#40 Spinal Surgery to Comeback: Competing When the System Wasn’t Built for You, With Meredith Young
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Meredith Young has achondroplasia – the most common form of dwarfism. She grew up in a family that lived and breathed sport, represented Australia across basketball, swimming, athletics and badminton, and became the fastest short-statured woman in the world. Without a sprint coach. Just pure heart and Asics on.
In 2009, she captained Australia's first ever team at the World Dwarf Games in Belfast. Then in 2013 she competed again – knowing her spine was deteriorating – because sport was her sanity. Months later she woke up from spinal surgery unable to move her legs.
This conversation goes everywhere. The netball coach who told a young Meredith she was a "danger" to her teammates. Fundraising Bunnings barbecues to get fifteen athletes to Belfast. Beating her ex-husband in the badminton medal round. Three and a half months in hospital. And what it takes to find your way back to sport when your body has fundamentally changed.
Meredith is one of the most generous, honest guests we've had on It's For The Girls. This one will shift how you think about difference, resilience, and what it actually means to belong in sport.
In this episode we cover:
- Growing up in mainstream sport with achondroplasia and finding competitive advantage in difference
- The netball coach who told Meredith she was a "danger" – and the lifelong impact of a coach's words
- Building and captaining Australia's first World Dwarf Games team from a Bunnings barbecue budget
- Becoming the fastest short-statured woman in the world with zero formal sprint training
- Two major spinal surgeries, losing the ability to walk, and the long road back
- The psychology of recovery – when sport is your identity and your body takes it away
- Why being born different is not a limitation but a pathway to becoming a more whole person
Follow Meredith & Links
Instagram: @meredith_young
Donate towards the 2027 Gold Coast World Dwarf Games
A big thank you to:
- Snap Fitness - our community partner helping keep girls and women in sport. Looking for your new gym? They're in over 280+ locations
- Toorak Hotel - is our go-to local for a proper pub feed, cold drinks, and a great atmosphere in the heart of Toorak.
- Project Better is a welcoming 24-hour Melbourne gym with saunas and ice baths for recovery. No lock-in contracts or fees – just a great local training vibe.
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