Gabriel Copola

GABRIEL COPOLA

Table Tennis
Gabriel Copola
"The sport gave me the possibility to compete, enjoy and interact with other people with or without disability."
#TeamSunrise

MY SPORT

The sport in my life has an extremely important meaning. All my life is related to sports, not only for practicing it but for being a physical education teacher. The sport gave me the possibility to compete, enjoy and interact with other people with or without disability. It also gave me the possibility to travel around the world. Table tennis for me is a big responsibility and I dedicate a lot of time for it. Other things that gave me the sport is to have a better quality of life because in training I can maintain and improve my body and my mind. The benefits are unbeatable, being an athlete is a way of life.

#TeamSunrise

ANOTHER DREAM FULFILLED

I was born on January 20, 1984 in a town called Ituzaingo, 40 km from Buenos Aires. At 11 years old I went to ride a bicycle, and doing a bad maneuver I fell off the bicycle, breaking my spine in the 4th dorsal vertebrae, an injury that doesn't allow me to walk. Only a few years after, at 14, I started with the practice of table tennis.

My dream was always to be a physical education teacher, and once I finished high school I enrolled in a public university and graduated in physical education. I'm currently a professor in this same institution and in two more universities.

In addition, the practice of table tennis didn't stop, by the contrary, it's been one of my major motivations. I've won since 2011, 4 of the last 5 Pan-American disputed and classified to my 3rd consecutive Paralympics.

"It's a sport you can practice no matter your physical limitations. We all can play table tennis."
My everyday wheelchair
"What I like the most of the QUICKIE Nitrum is how comfortable I feel riding it, its rigidity, its aesthetics, and how lightweight it is. During the game, I can maneuver it very easily and it responds with me in every movement I need to make during the game."

Road to Glory

2015
Open Slovakia
Singles - Bronze Medal
2015
Parapan American Games (Toronto)
Singles - Bronze Medal
Doubles - Silver Medal
2014
Open Slovakia
Singles - Bronze Medal
2014
Para South American (Santiago de Chile)
Singles - Gold Medal
Doubles - Gold Medal
2013
German Open
Singles - Bronze Medal
2013
Parapan American Games (Costa Rica)
Singles - Gold Medal
2013
Slovakia Open
Singles - Gold Medal
Doubles - Bronze Medal