Natalie du Toit
Even when bad things happen you have to try to use those bad things in a positive manner and really just take the positive out of it.Collection: Positive
I just want to be myself and go for my own dreams and goals.
I never thought of being disadvantaged.
It doesn't matter if you look different. You're still the same as everybody else because you have the same dream.
I don't think of myself as being disabled, or able-bodied.
I have always had a dream to take part in an Olympic Games, and losing my leg didn't change anything.
It's been a dream for me since I was six years old to go to the Olympic Games and to finally have that dream realised is something massive for me.
You have to work hard for what you want to achieve and you have to set goals and dreams and really go for them.
I am always late because people stop me for autographs and say hi.
Once your dream is fulfilled you face another one.
I say, 'If I'm able to go out there and achieve a dream, then anybody can do it.'
When you are racing in an able-bodied competition, you're all equal and you go out there and try your best, and that's what counts.
Going out there in the water, it feels as if there's nothing wrong with me.
I go out there and train as hard as anybody else.
My parents gave me a boxer puppy as a present. I have wanted a dog for years and must first give her attention in the morning.
By 9:30 at night, I go to bed.
It is wonderful to say that your days behind a school desk are over. It's just another phase in your life.
I'm probably the most negative person around.
Swimming is my passion and something that I love.
The situation in disability sport is growing, and girls like Ellie Cole are doing wonders.
I've been lucky enough to travel the world and win awards and medals, but it was time to stop.
Back in my mind, I never, ever wanted to give up swimming; it was something that I would carry on with.
Qualifying for the Olympic Games was one of those moments where you just cry because it was like you've climbed Mount Everest.
I think I've achieved everything I wanted to.
I just missed out on qualifying for the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
My message is not just to disabled people, but to everyone: You have to work hard.
I hate seaweed.
I have a strong upper body; I'm an arms swimmer, and I always have been.
If I'm able to go out there and achieve a dream, then anybody can do it.Collection: Dream
Swimming is my passion and something that I love. Going out there in the water, it feels as if there's nothing wrong with me. I go out there and train as hard as anybody else. I have the same dreams, the same goals. It doesn't matter if you look different. You're still the same as everybody else because you have the same dream.Collection: Dream
To be here, is a dream come true. A dream is something that you set for yourself, not what other people set for you. When I qualified in Seville I burst into tears. I couldn't believe that I was going to the Olympic Games.Collection: Dream