Kenley Teller Made A Splash As a 9-Year-Old At 2019 Nationals, And She’s Still Going Strong

Kenley Teller was just 9 years old when she went to her first U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships, but she made a big impression.

Not only was the fourth grader the youngest person ever to compete at Para nationals, but she also won the gold medal in the 50-meter backstroke S8, set three personal records and received the Amazing Grace Award, which recognizes a developing athlete who displays determination and courage in and out of the pool.

That was in 2019, and Teller is now a member of the U.S. national team with her sights set on the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.

“Actually making it to the Paralympics would be, honestly, my biggest dream and if I did make it, my greatest accomplishment,” Teller, now a ninth grader, said. “That’s definitely something I want to work toward because it would be an amazing experience.”

Teller was born with a rare genetic condition called popliteal pterygium syndrome. Her fingers, toes, eyelids and legs were all webbed, and she also had a cleft lip and pallet. It’s the same diagnosis as five-time Paralympian Rudy Garcia-Tolson, a swimmer, sprinter and triathlete who has five Paralympic medals, including two gold.

After multiple surgeries, much like Garcia-Tolson, Teller had a double leg amputation as a young child. When she was 5, the family was living in Washington state and she was doing rehabilitation at the Seattle Children’s Hospital. During a snowboarding outing, one of Teller’s physical therapists told the family about an adaptive swimming program headed by former Paralympic swimming coach Kiko Van Zandt called the Shadow Seals. Children could join the team at age 6 as long as they could swim the length of the pool.

Teller started swimming at 5 1/2, went to Shadow Seals at 6 and made the team. Her very first meet she won the coaches’ award.

“I always loved swimming for fun, and then when I swam competitively the first time I was intimidated at first, but I really liked it,” she said. “And I continued to like it from there.” 

Teller’s top events are distance freestyle and backstroke. She’s actively working on her 100-backstroke at the moment and said that may have the edge as her favorite, but she also enjoys competing in the 400-meter freestyle.

“It’s definitely a mental game because with short distances you know you can swim and be fine,” she said. “With long distances you know your body can do it, you just have to get your mind to do it as well. I like how it exercises my mind.”

That can mean a lot of self-talk while she’s in the water, especially once she passes the second 50-meter mark.

“That’s when I start to feel like I’m done,” she said. “I don’t want to do this anymore, but I have to tell myself, ‘You can do this, you’ve done it before, you can do it again, your body knows what to do. Just keep going.’”

Teller’s family is now located in Haymarket, Virginia. Her father is in the U.S. Army and currently working at the Pentagon, and they’re accustomed to moving around the country.

“Kenley’s already on her fifth or sixth swim team,” Aaron Teller said.

But the dedication remains the same, no matter where they are. Kenley currently has practice six days a week, alternating between early mornings and afternoons. Family vacations and free time are spent going to meets and at the pool, Aaron said, “But Kenley keeps us all going and motivated because of how hard she works. It’s worth all the sacrifice just to see her put so much heart and effort into something and succeed. That really drives the whole family.”

Last summer Kenley competed at the U.S. Paralympic Team Trials in Minneapolis, and although she wasn’t expected to make the team it was excellent preparation for the trials for Los Angeles, now just over three years away.

“Having that experience showed me what it would be like, and now since I’ve already been there I don’t have to be nervous,” she said.

Teller looks up to 31-time Paralympic medalist Jessica Long, who she met when she was younger, as well as Garcia-Tolson.

“(Long) was someone who looked similar to me that I hadn’t really seen before,” said Teller, who also plays the piano and loves anything to do with reading and writing. “Meeting her really pushed me at the beginning of my swimming journey. Then last year meeting Rudy, that was really great because he has the same syndrome. Even seeing his cleft lip, it was really amazing to see someone who looked exactly like me.”

Teller’s goals this year include achieving “B” times on the U.S. team and getting internationally classified, which she’ll do at her first-ever overseas meet in Japan in April. She also hopes to compete for a spot on the world championships team later this year.

So what keeps her motivated to put in all the work?

“I think it’s just the dream itself that really drives me,” she said. “Especially going to the Paralympic trials showed me that this is real, this is something I could do. I’m going to have to work for it every day so that I can achieve what I want.”

Karen Price is a reporter from Pittsburgh who has covered Olympic and Paralympic sports for various publications. She is a freelance contributor to USParaSwimming.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.