Sheryl James is a South African Paralympic track athlete based in Limpopo Province who was born with cerebral palsy; which is basically impaired muscle function, in her case on the right side of her body (hemiplegia).

She is also a farmer, a Polocrosse player, an outdoors enthusiast, and an aspiring writer with the aim of sharing her story of unbridling the challenges of life as a physically disabled individual.

Sheryl’s physical challenges have never stopped her from reaching her goals.  She has a passion for pushing the limits of what is possible and for inspiring those around her to do the same – to live life to the fullest!

Her track sprinting story starts back in 2018 at the age of 32; having initially participated in long distance running between 2010 and 2015 during which time she ran three Comrades marathons and completed two of them.  

In 2018 she joined IsAbility Sports Club, a club for able-bodied athletes and athletes with impairments. She was encouraged to start sprint training and, by the grace of God, pure determination, and hard work, went on to reach her athletics milestones with the help of her coaching team.

The opportunity to represent South Africa, and medaling in the 400m event, at both the Dubai 2019 Para Athletics World Championships and the Tokyo Paralympic Games in 2021, are career highlights.