This has been a great year for the Italian team at Le Paralimpiadi 2012 (The 2012 Paralympics). They finished their amazing adventure with a total of 28 medals: 9 gold, 8 silver and 11 bronze, 10 medals more than the previous Paralympics in 2008 and the same number of medals won in this year’s Olympics. I don’t know where to start with all these great, apparently disadvantaged, athletes, people who can achieve such incredible results with a courage and a determination that I can’t even begin to imagine.

I will start with the 20 years old blind swimmer Cecilia Camellini, who won four medals: two gold and two bronze. She won both the 50 and 100 meters stile libero (freestyle) setting the world record in both competitions.

Above: Cecilia Camellini wins gold medal 2012

Then there is 36 years old blind runner Annalisa Minetti, who set the new world record in the 1500 meters race for blind athletes. However, in order to reduce the number of competitions, the organizers of the Paralympic Games had decided to put her category, called T11, together with the T12 for partially sighted people. So despite setting the record, she “only” took the bronze medal because the 1st and 2nd places were won by partially sighted athletes.  At the end of the race, talking about her racing guide, Andrea Giocondi (blind runners have a guide running with them), Annalisa Minetti said: “Andrea è stato fondamentale. Due gambe da Miss le ha fatte diventare due gambe d’atleta.”  (Andrea has been fundamental. He has transformed two legs of a Miss into two legs of an athlete.) In fact Annalisa Minetti only started her running career in 2001. Previously she had been a Miss Italia contestant in 1997, where she finished 8th, and was awarded the title Miss Gambissime (Miss Legs), whilst as a singer, in 1998 she won il Festival di Sanremo, Italy’s most important song festival! (here’s a sample of her musical talents: Annalisa Minetti)

However, the athlete who made the biggest impact worldwide has to be 45 years old hand cyclist Alessandro Zanardi, better known as Alex Zanardi, who won two gold medals and a silver. He first won the H4 hand cycling time trial on Wednesday the 5th of September, 27 seconds ahead of the silver medallist! On the following Friday he won the 64 km race on the circuit at Brands Hatch, the same circuit he had first sped around as a Formula 3000 driver in 1991. Alex Zanardi began his sports career as a racing driver, first in the F3000, then in the F1, and finally in the American Indy. In 2001 during the Indy championship at Lausitz (Germany), his car was sliced open by another one in an horrific accident, and both his legs were instantly amputated by the impact (see this video: Zanardi crash). He lost so much blood that he was given the last rites whilst in the helicopter that was flying him to hospital. In 2004 Alex returned to full time motor racing, and in 2007 he started training in hand cycling, where he immediately showed a great talent. “Io senza sport non so vivere. Mi considero uno che ha avuto tantissimo nella vita e continuo ad aggiungere. Di questo non posso che ringraziare la Dea bendata” (I cannot live without sport. I consider myself a person who has had a lot in life and I keep adding to it. For this I can only thank the blindfolded goddess, Fortune) he declared.

http://youtu.be/1DCNbaCDRgw