There’s a wall in Noelle Malkamaki’s Chicago home where many of her achievements are displayed. While her two gold medals from the 2023 and 2024 World Para Athletics Championships are on that wall, her newest gold medal from the 2024 Paralympics is still sitting on a random table nearby.

“This is a new dream for me,” Malkamaki said as she sat on her living room couch, holding hands with her high school sweetheart and husband Robert Malkamaki. They both smiled as they reminisced about their time in Paris at the Summer Paralympics, where Malkamaki won a gold medal for F46 shot put.

Malkamaki has broken the world record for shot put four times within the past two years, with her most recent record being 14.06 meters. In simpler terms, it’s like throwing a nine-pound weight the length of three Jeeps.

She threw for DePaul for five years and she got an extra year of eligibility due to COVID-19. She graduated from DePaul in Dec. 2023 with a degree in English, and she’s thinking about whether she wants to go to graduate school for environmental science. 

Malkamaki, who is from Decatur, Illinois, was born with a disability called amniotic band syndrome, which gave her an undeveloped right arm and hand. She said she didn’t really identify herself as disabled until she was 20 years old, but that didn’t stop her from wanting to compete.

Her coach, Brandon Murer, told her she should give adaptive sports a try.

“It’s funny how a lot of athletes talk about a moment like that and it’s … ‘I’ve dreamt about this since I was a kid,’ and I can’t say that,” Malkamaki said. “For me, I was 20 years old when I realized I could do this, which is great. It’s still important.”

Now 23, Malkamaki became the third person in DePaul history to win an Olympic or Paralympic gold medal, sitting alongside taekwondo athlete Arlene Limas (1988 in Seoul) and DePaul women’s basketball coach Doug Bruno (2012 in London and 2016 in Rio de Janeiro).

While Malkamaki participated in F46 shot put at the Paralympics, she also has done discus throw, hammer throw and weight throw.

Her best shot put throw was 14.06 meters, which she accomplished at the Paralympics and also on April 13 at the Gary Wieneke Memorial. She also was selected as a 2024 Big East Woman of the Year Honoree. 

Malkamaki said all the work at DePaul has paid off.

“Coach Murer and my lifting coach, Jimmy, did not have to be so selfless as to devote so much time and energy to me,” Malkamaki said. “But, I think that says a lot about the DePaul community, they take care of their own.

“… Without that investment, I don’t think I would’ve been nearly as successful in my career. Period.”

When Malkamaki was in high school, she played with able-bodied kids in volleyball and track and field. She then decided that she wanted to do track and field for college. You only need one hand for shot put, so she never thought as far as competing in something like the Paralympics. 

“I think that’s what has gotten me so far in my career … never looking at a challenge like a stop sign but more of an opportunity to reframe,” Malkamaki said. “It’s not possible to do everything exactly how my teammates do it, but there’s always a way to get it done. 

“Creativity of approach is a good way to look at your disability.”

Her coach said he’s seen Malkamaki achieve great things — and takes pride in what she’s done.

“We were at a Big East meet, and she performed really well,” Murer recalled. “And me being a coach and having high standards, I started to say ‘Hey, you did a good job today, but I think we could’ve ….’”

She stopped him and said “Coach, I’m really proud of what I did today,” and she listed the reasons.

“And that’s a pinpointed moment,” Murer said, “because here’s a young person that’s standing up for what they did.” 

Even though Murer and others see Malkamaki as a pillar of strength, she said it’s not always easy — and shared that she has been going to therapy since last November to deal with performance anxiety on the field. That has become a big part of her training, she said. Her husband is also there to lean on.

“It’s tough to deal with being an athlete like this,” Robert Malkamaki said. “… Throwing is very individual. Your performance is on you, and that’s it.” 

He said she considered leaving the sport because of the pressures she felt. But he encouraged her to be patient, telling her, “You’re putting in the work. It’s going to pay off.”

“Now it’s gotten a lot better,” he said.

On Sept. 4, Malkamaki won her first ever Paralympic gold medal in Paris and broke the world record. Lots of media wanted to interview her after that moment, but she was solely focused on seeing her family, coach and husband who were sitting fairly high up in the stands.

Since the Paralympics, Malkamaki has been taking a break from shot put and anything related to it. She is considering her options, including when she’ll return to training, possibly for the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles.

“Being an athlete is very hard and rewarding,” Malkamaki said. “That being said, this is one of the first times in my career that I’m faced with this pivotal moment where I pick what happens next.”

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• History in the making: Noelle Malkamaki becomes DePaul’s first Paralympic athlete
• ‘Olivia’s Legacy’: Running Star at DePaul Crushes Records
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