Molten’s brand philosophy ‘feel the emotion’ comes alive with wheelchair rugby with every pass demanding courage, every contact testing resilience and every try carrying hope.

Lilliana ‘Lil’ Prucha - one of Australia’s rising stars - embodies all these qualities in this highly competitive, fast-paced and full-contact sport where women and men play on the same team.

Since discovering this sport in 2022, she has been inspiring a whole new generation of wheelchair rugby players with her passion and emotion for the game.

Making her international debut with the Australian Steelers national team in 2025, her rise in the sport has been meteoric - this month, she heads to 2026 WWR World Championship and afterwards her attention turns to Los Angeles 2028 Paralympic Games.

Now, in this exclusive interview, Molten has the privilege of exploring the power of sport and wheelchair rugby - so now it’s over to Lilliana!

How do you define the inherent value of sport?

I believe that the value of sport goes far beyond the scoreboard.

At its core, sport creates connection, belonging and shared experiences that stay with us long after the game is over.

It challenges us to discover what we're capable of, teaches resilience through both success and disappointment, and gives us moments of joy and purpose.

The emotions we feel through sport - the excitement, heartbreak, camaraderie and achievement - are what make it so powerful.

What do the emotions that come from sport mean to you?

Ultimately, sport brings people together, helps us find our place in the world - and reminds us that we are part of a big, beautiful community so much bigger than ourselves.

How did you first get into wheelchair rugby, and why did you feel this particular sport was the right fit for you?

I first discovered wheelchair rugby at a para sports festival in Perth, Western Australia. I was looking for something active, but also for connection and a community where I felt understood.

I was curious about wheelchair rugby from the start - I tried para ice hockey first before giving rugby a go.

Once I got on rugby court, something clicked. I loved the physicality, contact, speed and intensity.

I had never been a particularly sporty kid, so I didn’t expect to fall in love with such a tough sport, but it felt right almost immediately.

What made it the right fit though wasn’t just the sport. It was the people. Through rugby, I found real friends, a place to belong and a sport that challenged me in all the best ways. That combination kept me coming back, and it’s still why I love it today.

Could you share your thoughts on being selected as the very first wheelchair rugby player to receive the John Eales Rugby Excellence scholarship?

When I found out I'd received the scholarship, I was so excited!

It meant I was packing up my life in Perth on the west coast and moving over 3,600km away to the Gold Coast - on my own - to chase my goals in wheelchair rugby and at university working towards my Data Analytics degree.

But more than that, it meant that someone else could see the vision in what I wanted to achieve.

Bond University believed in me enough to select me, and that kind of backing is huge. It gave me the confidence to go after everything I'd been working toward.

How has John Eales - one of Australia's greatest rugby players - influenced your career so far?

Today, John Eales is one of my biggest mentors and he has helped me get to where I am today.

One of the best things he recommended to me was keeping a notebook, something I now carry to every game, tournament and training session. In it I write tactics, game plans, things I need to remember, my role on court and even big feelings when they come up.

That notebook has seriously helped me refine my game, and I think it's also shown my coaches that I want to learn and that I'm committed to being the best player I can be. That's the kind of mentorship John has offered me, and I'm so grateful for it.

Beyond that, being the first wheelchair rugby player to receive this scholarship means a lot more than just personal honour. I hope it signals that wheelchair rugby is being recognised as the serious, high-performance sport that it is, and that it opens doors for the broader adaptive sport community.

Moments like this matter, because they show the next generation of athletes with disabilities that there is a place for us at the table - we deserve to take up space and be seen for all that we are.

Is there a particular match or moment in your career that remains most memorable to you?

Two moments stand out most, for very different reasons.

The first was the 2024 Women’s Cup in Paris, early in my competitive rugby journey. I was the only Australian competing and was placed on a team with athletes from around the world, some of whom I had never met and didn’t share a language with.

With no expectations on us, we played with freedom and joy, removing all expectations that we had placed on ourselves, and we ended up winning gold. That experience will always stay with me. I loved the freedom of heading into the unknown, playing without fear, building something real with new teammates and discovering what I was capable of.

Having my mum there made it even more special. Seeing her tears as we won gold, and feeling that shared relief and pride, meant everything.

The second was the 2025 Shibuya Cup, for the opposite reason. It was one of the hardest competitions I’ve faced mentally, so being named Best Mid-Pointer was incredibly meaningful. It reminded me that I can only control my own performance, not the scoreboard, the outcome or what others say or do.

That award came when I really needed it. It showed me that the work I put in every day is visible, even when results don’t go your way. When things feel difficult, I still come back to that moment.

What do you consider to be the biggest appeal of wheelchair rugby?

For me, the biggest appeal of wheelchair rugby is, without a doubt, the community.

I wasn’t a sporty kid growing up, so I never imagined sport would become such a central part of my life. But the wheelchair rugby community pulled me in and made me feel like I belonged. These are people who just get it, no explanation needed. The friendships in this sport are special. They challenge you, support you, and bring out the best in you.

I also love the connections that happen around the game. At competitions, I try to swap kits with other teams, collect jerseys, and make friends along the way. It has become one of my favourite parts of competing internationally.

And, of course, the sport itself has completely won me over. I love the physical and mental challenge of discovering what I’m capable of. I still don’t always see myself as an athlete. I’m just a girl doing her best. But wheelchair rugby has given me a community, a challenge, and a sense of belonging I’m incredibly grateful for.

Could you share your future goals and the message you hope to convey through wheelchair rugby?

My goals are big, but my philosophy is simple: have fun doing what I love. I want to win gold at the World Championships in São Paulo. I want to go to the Los Angeles 2028 Paralympics and come home with a cool medal. I want to be the best defensive 2.0 player I can be. But more than anything, I want to enjoy the journey.

I don't think 60-year-old me will remember the specifics of each game. What I'll remember is the feeling of having fun, of being present, of doing something I truly love with people I truly love doing it with.

Beyond the court, I'm studying for a Bachelor of Data Analytics at Bond University, and my long-term goal is to bring those two worlds together by working as a wheelchair rugby data analyst.

I want to use data to help make better decisions about athlete performance, team strategy and the growth of the sport I love. To me, it all feels like part of the same vision - finding every possible way to contribute to wheelchair rugby, whether that's as a player, a coach, or someone working behind the scenes to help the sport grow.

Outside of my own competing, one of the most meaningful things I do is coach kids in wheelchair rugby on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane. Watching those kids discover what they're capable of, make friends, find their people, that's everything to me. I want them to know that they bring value, that they belong and that they are amazing exactly as they are.

That's really the message I hope to convey through everything I do.

Disability doesn't define what you can achieve. There is a place for you in sport no matter who you are.

And it is okay to dream big, even when the path to get there is hard. I'm living proof that all of those things can be true at once.

Editor’s note:In wheelchair rugby, players are classified according to the level of their impairment, with 0.5 representing the highest level of impairment and 3.5 the lowest. This means teams must balance different classifications on court, with the combined classification of the four players not exceeding eight points. An exception to this eight-point rule is made for each female classified athlete playing on court, where teams are granted an additional 0.5 or 1.0 point. This means carefully combining players with different strengths, making teamwork, tactics and player combinations a unique and essential part of this sport.

Photo credit - Wheelchair Rugby Australia