How AIS Engineering is supporting rising wheelchair racer Aimee Fisher

When Para-athlete Aimee Fisher first started wheelchair racing, she made do with a chair that wasn’t quite up to scratch, with each push forward accompanied by a ticking noise that followed her around the track. 

The sound caught the attention of the AIS Engineering team during the Summer Down Under series in Canberra in January, leading to a relationship that has been game-changing for Fisher’s performance. 

“To have that face-to-face interaction with the AIS Engineers and have the chair come back so much more comfortable and functional is second to none. You can't ask for much more,” Fisher said.   

The AIS Engineers have spent the year modifying the chair seat, foot, and knee components and adjusting the bearings, something coach and Paralympic legend Louise Sauvage says has enabled Fisher to race with greater confidence and consistency. 

“We're always looking for those half percents or quarter percents here, there and everywhere, and all those things actually make a big difference at the end of the day,” Sauvage said.   

“I think if we didn't have this level of engineering support, we probably wouldn't be as much at the cutting edge, especially for our high performance athletes.”  

While the AIS Engineering team has long worked with Australia’s top-performing wheelchair athletes, a record investment in Para-sport by the Australian Government is enabling this support to extend to emerging athletes through the Para Uplift.  

Led by the AIS, in partnership with Paralympics Australia, state and territory sport institutes and academies, and national sporting organisations, the Para Uplift aims to grow Australia’s Para-sport talent by increasing pathway and classification support and improving access to specialised coaching and performance support.  

Fisher is just one of the rising Para-athletes currently benefiting from this support and now has her sights set on competing at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, followed by the LA 2028 Paralympics and, ultimately, Brisbane 2032. 

Learn more about the Para Uplift.    

Keep reading: How AIS Engineering is uplifting Para-Paddling | ASC 

Watch the full AIS Engineering Para Uplift series: Meet the AIS Engineers, opens in a new tab