Sarah Adam was an able-bodied individual who wanted to combine her love of sports and occupational therapy, so she volunteered in wheelchair rugby, which was her initial introduction to the sport.
In 2016, Adam received a multiple sclerosis diagnosis. She had noticed some warning signs like numbness in her hands in high school, but as she progressed into graduate school, the situation worsened. Adam said she didn’t share that diagnosis with anyone, taking time to process it herself. But after that, her mindset changed.
Adam began playing wheelchair rugby in 2019 and made her international debut at the Americas Championship in 2022, where the team won gold and later that year won a silver medal at the World Championships. In 2023, she was part of the gold medal winning Parapan American Games team that secured USA Wheelchair Rugby a spot for Paris 2024. She also became the first American woman to win Parapan American Games gold in wheelchair rugby.