Nicole Yam, a University of Saskatchewan student and former member of the national women's figure skating team, is one of 16 students across Canada to receive the 2011 UCBeyond Scholarship.

Yam, formerly known as Nicole Watt, suffers from inflammatory arthritis. Despite living with the debilitating, chronic disease, she was the youngest member of the national team and travelled all over the world competing for Canada.

Today, she coaches young figure skaters while working toward a degree at the U of S.

The scholarship is worth up to $5,000. It is given to students who excel both academically and personally when dealing with the challenges of inflammatory arthritis.