How well are we acquainted with ourselves and our possibilities? We all answer this question in different ways, while 21-year-old Italian fencer, winner of Rio Paralympic Games Beatrice Vio answers this question with her example.
She overcame almost incurable disease, fought and trained to achieve her goal without forgetting to always smile.
This edition of Mediamax Sport’s In One Shot is dedicated to the victorious photo of Vio in 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.
Before we talk about her victory, it is worth reminding her story. Bebe, which is translated from Italian as baby, started going in for sport when she was 5 years old.
At the age of 11 she caught a cold, which then turned into meningitis. It was a very dangerous stage of the illness, which only 5 out of 100 survive. Beautiful and always smiling Beatrice was among them; she overcame the illness but she lost her arms and legs. Nevertheless, she didn’t give up, instead continued to train and achieved significant results.
A special foil-prosthesis was made for her, and she became the first female athlete in Europe who participated in competitions on her wheelchair.
“Performing on a wheelchair is a bigger challenge, as you don’t have a chance to give up, you always need to attack,” the athlete said.
She was too young to participate in 2012 London Olympics, and Vio performed only as a keeper of the Olympic flame. She became most popular in Rio.
Vio successfully defeated Zhou Jingjing (China) with 15:7 score in the final, showing in the photo all her emotions.
“I was very focused in the final, as I understood that it was time to either become the best or be the second. I wanted to win very much, so I did it. It was fantastic and I cried loudly. I am thankful to my incredible team, since we achieved this all together. I am half a person and half a robot, and if I am able to achieve gold medal, it means everyone can make their dreams come true,” Bebe said.
5-times European and 3-times World champion frequently appears on magazine covers. She is very active and with her example and optimism she inspires people. She gathered a number of people, who founded Art4sport charity organization to help children with disabilities.
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