When last we heard about Kelani Lawrence, she was living the dream: national and international racquetball champion, happily married, working at the Salem YMCA.
She is still doing well with her game, but therein lies a remarkable story. This past weekend in Des Moines, Iowa, she won a place on the U.S. National Racquetball Team by finishing second in singles and third in doubles. She accomplished that by overcoming a crippling attack nine months ago at an outdoor racquetball tournament that left her all but blind in one eye.
“A guy smashed a glass in my face when a bunch of players and I were hanging out,” she says, not wanting to go into more detail about the attack. “I required eight stitches on my eyeball and my vision was negatively affected and it won’t come back.” The man who assaulted her was arrested.
Her life since the attack has been one of adjustment and extraordinary effort, even in simple daily living. “I’ve had to adjust to everything,” she says. Depth perception has been problematic, especially in driving, but she has learned to compensate.
Lawrence was playing in an outdoor tournament at the time of the assault, even though outside is not where she is most comfortable. The tournament drew her because COVID-19 had cancelled just about everything else, especially at the elite level and “this was a chance to play against top-tier players and see some of my racquetball friends.” She didn’t win the tournament, something of a rarity for her.
The time off taught her some good lessons, she says. “I had to learn to be patient, always a problem. With COVID, everybody was working on what we were weak at. It was a good opportunity.”
Since the attack, she has moved to Norfolk—where she grew up—and is near her mother, a national and international champion, as well. She and her husband bought a home there. She sells insurance and works with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “It’s kinda what my dad did,” she said, “so I have some background in it and a master’s degree.”
A lot of work remains before she regains her old level of performance, but this past weekend, she proved she’s well on the way.
About the Writer:
Dan Smith is an award-winning Roanoke-based writer/author/photographer and a member of the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame (Class of 2010). His blog, fromtheeditr.com, is widely read and he has authored seven books, including the novel CLOG! He is founding editor of a Roanoke-based business magazine and a former Virginia Small Business Journalist of the Year (2005).
