Words by AMY MALPASS HAHN Photography by JULIE ADAMS

If you think being born without a left hand and forearm has affected the life of Annabelle Williams OAM, you’d be right. But not in the way you think. Her disability has given her a determination, perspective and ultimately, a life, that many people will only dream about. This is a woman who dreams big and lives her life with purpose, which is why we’re so proud to​ have her as part of the AllBright Australian community​​ and introduce her to you all here (make sure you reach out and say hello!).

In her twenties, Annabelle trained six days a week as captain of the Australian Paralympic swim team while simultaneously building a professional legal career, including stints in Paris at the Australian Trade Commission and Washington D.C. as a representative for an NFL/NBA player agency. In 2012, her dream came true when she won a gold medal at the London Paralympics. Since then, she has continued with sports as a commentator, General Counsel for the Australian Olympic Committee, and Vice President of Paralympics Australia. 

We’re not finished yet. Annabelle is a passionate diversity advocate. She was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2013. She has worked as a stunt double for Charlize Theron. And she completed an executive MBA at Stanford. We told you she dreams big. Annabelle is also a mother to two-year-old daughter Josie.  

For International Women’s Day, Annabelle joins us for our first ever 24-hour global Step Forward summit and will be part of an exceptional panel of Australian women who will be talking to AllBright about the importance of belonging and inclusion and also about how the kindness of women and a strong sisterhood have been so crucial to her success.

Annabelle Williams

Can you tell us a little bit about your childhood?

I was born in Sydney on 21 July 1988 at King George V Hospital in Camperdown. Rumour has it that I was the biggest baby ever to be born at the hospital – but I think (and hope!) that’s a story which has been embellished over the years! Nevertheless, I was large! Plus, I was missing my left hand, so I would have been even heavier! We moved to Jakarta, Indonesia when I was seven for my Dad’s work and lived there for three years. I attended the British International School, which is where I started to swim competitively. When we returned to Sydney, a number of my friends were swimming competitively in squads, so I went along with them a couple of times a week. To be honest, I hated swimming training. I thought it was so antisocial and much preferred athletics where I could chat to my friends during training, rather than having my head buried in the water.

Growing up, were you acutely aware of your difference? If so, how did you navigate the difficult childhood years?

When I was very young, I was blissfully naïve that I was different at all! Even when people asked me questions, I always quite proudly said ‘This is my born arm!’ (Which is what I used to call it, because I didn’t have the language to explain that I had a congenital limb deficiency and my parents had always told me I was ‘born’ that way. Hence, ‘born arm’.)

I always felt very supported and encouraged during my primary school years. I’m sure kids would sometimes have said nasty things, but I don’t recall that happening very often. I remember one boy telling me my arm was ‘different’ and even though it was probably intended to hurt my feelings, I remember thinking ‘well, that’s factually accurate’ and going back to play with my group of girlfriends. Even though I was never bullied, I always (and sometimes still do) felt the need to prove to people that having one arm wasn’t a limitation for me. My kindergarten teacher told me one day that if I ever needed help tying my shoelaces, to just ask. Nobody else in the class was spoken to and I saw it as a challenge. I HAD to be able to tie my shoelaces by next week’s sports lesson! I spent every waking minute practising tying shoelaces – trying to figure out a way to do it with one hand. Before anyone could leave our house in the morning, I had to successfully tie their laces! The next week I asked my teacher if I could tie everyone’s shoelaces in the class. How annoying for that poor teacher! But I was pretty determined.

During my teenage years, I spent so much time playing sport that my appearance wasn’t really of much concern to me. I ran competitively for a number of years and really hoped to make the 2004 Paralympic Games for the 400m. I developed stress fractures in both my shins, which derailed my plans, but athletics had introduced me to the world of Paralympic sport and other people who had the same differences as me. I really looked up to an amazing runner called Amy Winters who won multiple Paralympic gold medals and was missing her right hand. We trained together and she was always so lovely to me and gave me a lot of confidence. I was also fortunate to grow up with the best parents (I know a lot of people say that, but mine really are THE BEST!). They encouraged me to give everything a go and were always there to chat things through if something was a challenge.  

What was your experience like competing (and winning gold, no less!) in the Paralympics?

Nothing compares to that feeling. We weren’t expected to win gold in that race and the surprise, combined with the realisation that it was the culmination of 15 years of hard work, sacrifice and sleep deprivation (which actually prepared me very well for motherhood!), made the experience completely overwhelming. I had always hoped that if I won a gold medal, I would react like the people who win Academy Awards – very excited, but also poised and graceful. I was none of those things – I was OUT OF MY SKIN excited and looked like a banshee wailer or a deranged animal! It was just the best. Even reflecting on that moment now gives me goosebumps. We also only won by 0.03seconds and there was a fingernail between first and fourth place. It has to be one of the most nail-biting finishes in sport. You can see it here.

As well as being a gold medalist, you also have a law degree. What motivated you to find a career outside of sport?

My parents always encouraged me to swim and pursue every opportunity that comes along, however they wisely also told me that my sporting career had a shelf life and probably wouldn’t continue past the age of 30 and so it was important that I had a fulfilling and rewarding post sport career. I made my first Australian team, the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, when I was in year 12. I was also school vice-captain that year and had decided I wanted to study law and international relations at university with a view of hopefully one day becoming a diplomat. It was an incredibly busy year for me and I missed 10 weeks of school because of the Commonwealth Games, so I had to really learn the art of compartmentalising!

There were periods when I was stressed by the fact that I was swimming and not studying and other times when I was worried that I should be swimming not studying and the worry of it all was totally counterproductive, so I tried to simplify things by just focusing entirely on whatever task I was doing at that point in time so as to not become too overwhelmed. I also had a lot of support from my parents and teachers at school who helped me catch up on the work I had missed while I was at the Games. When I was studying law up at Bond University in Queensland, I undertook a summer clerkship at Allen’s Linklaters in Sydney. They offered me a graduate position and that was my first job in law.

Although it made life very busy, I am so grateful that my parents encouraged me to study throughout my sporting career. Every athlete finds the transition to the ‘real world’ a challenge, but it’s made so much easier if you can channel your energy in a new direction. Athletes thrive on routine and structure and it can be very challenging if you lose those things without a new, clear direction!

You’re also a sports reporter and are on a number of boards and committees. Have you always worked best when juggling a number of balls in the air?

I remember thinking that 2006 was going to be the busiest year of my life and once I got through that I could relax and take things easy! In hindsight I think every year since 2006 has been busier than the last! I do enjoy having multiple things on the go. I’m the vice president of the board of Paralympics Australia, the chair of the Paralympics Australia athletes commission, a member of the IAAF disciplinary tribunal and a TV reporter and sports.

I also resigned from my legal job last year and have been pursuing a number of international opportunities which stemmed from the Stanford executive MBA! I’m doing a lot of motivational speaking and pre-COVID, I travelled to Saudi Arabia, Spain, France, Belarus and back to the US, speaking to companies about overcoming adversity, resilience, courage, grit and fearlessness. I’m passionate about diversity and inclusion and am honoured to be able to travel the world speaking to people about becoming empowered. It’s a very busy schedule and I’m lucky to have an enormous amount of support from my parents and my wonderful husband, who also has a very busy career as a barrister.

I really think those compartmentalising skills have helped me a lot. Trying to be present in everything I do. I write very detailed to do lists and schedule my time to make sure I have a balance. Finding a balance is a real challenge, but my priority is Josie and my family and then I make sure that the rest of the work I do aligns with my values. 

Now, the million-dollar question - how do you get it all done?

We have a lot of help, especially from my incredible Mum! I definitely couldn’t do it alone. I am fortunate to have family in Sydney and my parents provide my husband and I with incredible support which means we can pursue our careers simultaneously. However, it isn’t easy. My Mum looks after Josie two days a week, so I try and schedule all my meetings on those two days and then I do the rest of my work during Josie’s naps and once she’s gone to bed. When I read that, it sounds horribly busy, and it is, but we also manage to find a lot of time to just enjoy time together. On the weekends we take Josie to swimming lessons and usually spend hours in the Botanical Gardens. The juggle however, is real. Even though I took 12 months of maternity leave, I still had board roles and other commitments, and I just had to make it work.

A huge shout out to the amazing CEO of Paralympics Australia, Lynne Anderson, who let me breastfeed in her office during board meetings and to my Mum who did countless laps of the office between feeds! Attitudes towards working Mums are changing and in my experience, if you communicate to people about what you need and what your boundaries are, they are more than willing to help! My advice is find a support network, and hold them close (and then hang on for the ride)! I’ve already seen how much Josie has changed in 15 months – the newborn phase was so short! So even when it’s all a bit chaotic, I try to remind myself that in no time she’ll be all grown up, so I soak in every moment! 

What was your expectation of motherhood before becoming a mother?

I actually had low expectations! I thought babies never, ever slept and pooped and vomited constantly! Thankfully, that hasn’t been our experience at all, so I was very pleasantly surprised! In all honesty though, the second I saw a Josie I completely fell in love. She is a gorgeous little girl with a very sweet temperament and makes me laugh every day. I don’t think women talk enough about the challenges following the birth. I was lucky to have a very good labour, but I had no understanding of how hard breastfeeding would be! I also didn’t realise that babies needed to be fed every two hours, 24 hours a day! We were lucky that Josie was a good sleeper. I can only imagine how difficult it would be for mothers and fathers who have to go back to work while their child is still waking up multiple times a night. Those guys are heroes!

You’ve taken Josie to board meetings to breastfeed - how has this been received? Why is it important to you to do so?

I have! Josie has come to so many meetings already! I’m on the Board of Paralympics Australia, and the Board and CEO are so understanding. During the meeting, my AMAZING Mum comes and takes Josie for a walk and then I pop out to feed her in the CEO’s office. Josie has joined a number of meetings at the end during ‘general business’ and always has plenty to say! I am also the Chair of the Athletes’ Commission and a couple of times I think Josie thought she was the Chair! I think this type of thing is becoming more accepted, and so it should. Mothers have a huge amount to balance and a massive amount of value to add. If we really want a diverse workplace, we need to adopt practices that reflect it.

What legacy are you hoping to create for your daughter?

I want to expose Josie to a broad range of society so that she grows up knowing that there are people from diverse backgrounds and she treats them all equally. I think she realises that my left arm is a little different and whenever I hold my right hand out to hold hers, she pushes it away and wants to hold my left arm. It’s very sweet!

Who and what inspire you?

My grandma, Josephine Cripps (my daughter was named after her and my Mum, whose name is also Josephine), whose husband was killed in a car crash when she was 25. She was left, a single mother of two children (my Mum and Uncle) in the 1950s. She had gone to teachers college and in those days women employed in the public service were required to give up their jobs once they married (insanity – can you believe that the law only changed in 1966)! When my grandfather was killed she basically had to beg for her job as a home economics teacher and she raised two children all on her own, with very little support in Sydney (her parents and in laws lived in Wollongong and Blackheath respectively).

She provided Mum and Uncle Steve with a fabulous education and all the opportunities with it. My grandma very much lived by the mantra that you just put one foot in front of the other and keep going. She never complained and didn’t have time for wallowing. She was brilliant, and funny, and had thousand of friends who just adored her. She was my role model growing up and since having my little Josie, I realise more than ever how challenging things must have been for her. I’m looking forward to letting little Josie know all about her namesake!

Go to www.annabellew.com