By Kehinde Odetoye
Bruna Alexandre, a table tennis player, was chosen for her nation’s Olympic team for Paris 2024, making history as the first Brazilian to compete at both the Olympics and the Paralympics. The 29-year-old lost her right arm due to a blood clot that occurred when she was just a few months old, yet she began playing table tennis at the age of seven.
She took home two bronze medals from the Rio Paralympics in 2016 and two more in Tokyo 2020—one each for team and individuals. She is followed by two other competitors at both Games, Melissa Tapper of Australia and Natalya Partyka of Poland in table tennis. Partyka made her debut in Beijing in 2008, then again in London in 2012, before Tapper joined her in Rio and Tokyo. After competing in the 2008 Olympics, Sandra Paovic of Croatia sustained a spinal injury in a car accident that limited her movement. Despite this setback, Paovic returned to table tennis and won gold at the 2016 Paralympics. Other athletes who competed in the Olympics and Paralympics were swimmer Natalie du Toit and sprinter Oscar Pistorius of South Africa.
I’m extremely excited about the opportunity to represent all Brazilians with disabilities at the Olympic Games and demonstrate that I can compete on an equal footing with any athlete,” said Alexandre, who trains in other sports such as skateboarding and futsal to improve her balance and coordination. “I have a dream of becoming a Paralympic champion, and playing against athletes without disabilities makes me stronger in my pursuit of this goal.” The Olympic table tennis events take place from July 27 to August 10 in Paris, before the Paralympics begin on August 28.