Jess Shaw hopes she can be an inspiration to others as she lives out her childhood dreams at the Commonwealth Games this summer.
Shaw is part of England’s 12-strong netball squad for Glasgow 2026, with the 30-year-old set for her first major international tournament.
It comes after a whirlwind few years for the midcourter, who considered retiring before finding her feet with Severn Stars and then Loughborough Lightning.
An England debut came in 2024 and Shaw has been a mainstay for the Roses ever since.
The 30-year-old has done it all managing type 1 diabetes, rising to the top of her sport despite doctors initially questioning whether she would be able to be active.
Now, she wants her exploits this summer to show others what can be achieved.
“I'm quite a stubborn person and I wanted to prove people wrong,” she said. “From that point, I was determined to show that I could still do it. That probably spurred me on even more.
“But for a long time, especially when I was at Stars, I was still quite in denial and didn't really acknowledge publicly that I had type 1 diabetes.
“That changed when I met Lola, who I think was about four years old at the time. She was a fan who came to games, and she also had type 1 diabetes.
“She was looking up to me, and from that moment I thought, ‘You know what, I'm going to try and be a role model.’
“I wanted younger people to see that, despite the challenges they might face or people telling them certain things aren't possible, they can still achieve what they want.
“I think that naturally made me want it even more. Through injuries and setbacks, I've always had the mindset that I'm going to come back, prove myself and prove to other people that I am good enough and that I can be out there.
“Having people with type 1 diabetes come up to me actually helps me a lot. As much as they might look up to me or see me as a role model, I see them as role models too.”
Shaw has had her fair share of other battles too on her road to selection for the Commonwealth Games.
She made her Netball Super League debut aged 15 but found her progress bogged down by injuries.
That was a key reason why she was left questioning her future in 2023 but a stellar season at Stars was key to a first England cap aged 28 just a year later.
“Just before I got the call to say I was in the squad, I took a moment afterwards to think, wow, what a journey I've been on,” she added.
“To now be going to a Commonwealth Games and representing my country is a surreal moment.
“At one point I thought my England days were over and that I wasn't going to get my first international cap.
“Coming back into it a bit older, I think it's made me want to soak everything in, create memories along the way and just go out there and do what I know I can do.
“If there's one thing I'd say to athletes coming through, it's that your journey might look different from someone else's but stay in it, enjoy it, and keep putting the hard work in.
“I'm really proud of the journey I've had because the reward at the end feels even sweeter. Knowing the challenges I've faced along the way has probably made me a much better athlete.”
