Brazilian table tennis player in the Olympics with one hand
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Bruna Alexandre smashes and chops like any other table tennis player. But his style of serving is different. Holds the ball with the racket in the left hand, then serves with the left hand. Of course, there is no way without it. His right hand is not!
Now you can do the serve easily. Not only that, the serve is now one of the strengths of his game. But when he first picked up a bat 22 years ago, seven-year-old Bruna would have thought it difficult to do such a thing with one hand. That Bruna made history yesterday. He became the first Brazilian to participate in the Olympics and Paralympics.
Brunner had to have his right arm amputated at the age of three months due to thrombosis. The 29-year-old table tennis player was undeterred. He told AFP, 'I have been trying for many years to play in the Olympics. I knew the task was difficult. Because the competition in Brazil is quite difficult.
After going through that tough road, Bruna says, 'But I succeeded. come here Today I have a big dream fulfilled.
Although his Olympic debut ended at the beginning. He lost in the first round against the top player in the world. But don't lose heart at all, 'Anything is possible, it's important to show it. Whether you have one arm or one leg.'
As a result, even if you lose in the first round, you will celebrate, 'I'm celebrating and I'll do it for a few more days. That dream is coming true today.'
Besides table tennis, Brunner also has skills in skateboarding and cycling. He also won silver at the Tokyo Paralympics in table tennis. He had earlier won bronze in Rio. For now, he has his eyes on winning gold at the Paralympics, and wants to return to the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
"There are other (para)athletes who have made it to the Olympic Games," says Bruna. I think it will help bring not only our sport, but also people with disabilities into the sport.'
Bruna is not the first para-athlete to compete in table tennis at the Olympics. Australia's Melissa Tapper is playing for the third time. His right hand is paralyzed.
Bruna's inspiration, however, is Polish player Natalia Pertyka. After 2008 Beijing, he also participated in 2012 Olympics. 'She is my source of inspiration,' says Bruna, mentioning that she has seen many of Partika's videos on YouTube. An inspiration not only to me, but to Melissa Tapper and many others.'
But knowing that she can inspire others herself, Bruna knows, 'I think it can open a lot of doors. Participation of all in our country can be improved. The game can play a big role there.'
However, Bruna also said that no one has ever looked at him differently, 'on the street, at school, nowhere (to look at someone differently). It helped me a lot.'
For now, the Olympic journey ends here. Now his focus is on the Paralympics, which begin on August 28. Bruna understands that there is a lot of difference between the Paralympics and the Olympics. But his motto is, 'Don't stop dreaming.'