An 11-year-old Tampa girl who recently won 15 gold medals at the National Junior Disability Championships added one more honor Wednesday to her growing list of accomplishments: She threw the first pitch at a Tampa Bay Rays game.
- Danielle Kanas, 11, has only the use of one arm
- Kanas lost her left arm as an infant due to an infection
- Kanas won gold medals in multiple track and field events
There isn’t much 11-year-old Danielle Kanas can’t do. She plays the guitar, runs track and is a fierce competitor.
And she does it with the use of only one arm. A patient at Shriners Hospital in Tampa since she was a toddler, she lost her left arm as an infant due to an infection.
But that in no way stops her. She performed so well and won gold in so many competitions at the National Junior Disability Championships last month that she had to be given a plaque, instead.
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The mild mannered 11-year-old is also cool under pressure. She showed that composure Wednesday as she stepped out toward the pitcher's mound at Tropicana Field, meeting the Rays' players along the way.
As Danielle shook their hands, many of them wished her good luck. One player told her to be sure to throw a strike.
Once it was her turn to deliver the ball over the plate, she did not disappoint.
Andy Chasanoff, Danielle's coach during the National Junior Disability Championships, says he has no doubts about what she is capable of.
“Danielle is probably one of the easiest athletes to coach,” he said. “She listens really well and she incorporates what we talk about into action.”
Danielle said she also had a message to anyone with a disability, to not let what others think affect you.
Judging by the applause for her tonight at the Trop, everyone here thinks she did a great job.