Australian Rugby legend Ellia Green may be facing their toughest physical challenge ever on SAS Australia 2022, however, their most emotional one came after losing their mother at the height of their career.
Best known for their athletic talent as an Aussie Rugby Sevens player and also winning a gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Ellia dealt an unfathomable blow after their mum lost her battle with cancer.
SAS Australia 2022 Star Ellia Green Opens Up About Their Challenges When Their Mother Became Sick
Just weeks before the Olympic gold medalist was headed for the World Cup in San Francisco, they received a devastating call that completely shook their world.
“I got this phone call from my mum’s doctor and also from my godmother saying ‘your mum has a brain tumour’ and ‘not just one, she has several’,” they shared with Yahoo! Sport.
“They said ‘we can treat it but it’s not going to save her life’ and that’s when I realised that this was a real nightmare that we were about to face together,” they added.
Gearing up to face one of the biggest sporting competitions of their life whilst having their mum so sick was what they described as “a challenge [on] a whole new level”.
How Ellia Green’s Mother Inspired Them To Carry On Despite Her Own Health Struggles
The sports star was prepared to miss the 2018 Rugby Sevens World Cup and stay home with their mum, however, their mother talked them out of it and encouraged them to go.
“My mum had been sick quite a few times before this but she had overcome it every single time,” Ellia shared.
“It was like she was superwoman – she could fight anything and that’s exactly what I had always thought.”
The encouragement and support from their mother inspired the rugby player to push through and compete with their teammates and their mum even watched on from her hospital bed,
Ellia’s team went on to secure a bronze medal during the World Cup and to top it off, the SAS Australia star and their partner Nessa Turnbull Roberts, welcomed a daughter together in 2022 who they named in honour of Ellia’s mother Yolanta.
Watch SAS Australia Monday – Wednesday at 7.30 pm on Channel Seven.
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