Katie is 26 years old. She's been kayaking since she was 12 when as a Girl Guide she undertook a six week course at her local club and gained her proficiency badge. Katie still remembers her first experience of being in a kayak.
"We went on a river in Leamington and we had to move around in the boat. Then we had to capsize. It wasn't scary but the water was really cold!"
Katie has taken part in a lot of competitions. "Some great", she says, and others, "not so good."
"At Holme Pierrepoint there was snow and the water was so choppy we had to get out really quickly before we capsized. Another time I didn't feel good was when I was right at the back in a race but once Heather and me were both out in front, that was great."
Katie was part of the regional kayak squad at the SOGB National Games in Glasgow, winning silver and a bronze medal. In the World Summer Games in Shanghai in 2007 she won 2 bronze medals in the 200m and 500m races.
Katie says to be good at kayaking you, "need to be strong in your arms and shoulders and you have to not mind bad weather."
"My team are much faster than me but over a longer distance or in bad weather I'm better. It can be hard in very hot weather or when it's rainy or snowy. But I don't mind it."
Before the World Summer Games, Katie worked out together with her squad to increase their speed. Her coach pushed them to improve their stamina with longer races. She also makes sure she eats healthy food and trains in the local gym two days a week, with her mum or on her own.
She says: "I do pull ups, cardio exercises and circuit training. I run on the spot and check my pulse rate. They've given me a sheet with numbers on it to check on my progress."
Katie's Mum and Dad accompanied her to the World Games in China where she had a wonderful experience. She says, "they've been a fantastic support. I think about my fiancé Paul because I love him. And I just go for it. Sometimes he comes to watch me race. He doesn't do kayak but he should, he's a very good swimmer."
Katie and Paul met at college on a catering course. She is now working in catering at the Remploy headquarters in Coventry where she arranges buffets for meetings and lunches. Remploy also sponsored her to attend the SOGB World Games in Shanghai.
2007 was a great year for Katie as not only did she go to Shanghai to compete in the Special Olympics World Summer Games and brought home two bronze medals, but Katie also went to St James Palace in London to be presented with her Queens Guide badge by the Countess of Wessex and also to Buckingham Palace to meet Princess Anne along with other members of the St Johns Ambulance.
Katie says her next challenge will be independent living which she and her family are looking into at the moment.
