Alcaraz sends congratulatory love to Spain's Paris 2024 historymakers
As much as showcasing the incredible on-court talent within the wheelchair tennis world, the Paris 2024 Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Event has also seen the personalities, characters and backstories of players shine through.
Two prime examples of that are Dani Caverzaschi and Martin de la Puente, a courageous and audacious duo who have illuminated the French capital from the moment they arrived – and they continue to do so.
They also have their own slice of history after producing a stirring comeback to defeat home favourites Stephane Houdet and Frederic Cattaneo 4-6 6-4 10-5 in the men’s doubles bronze medal match on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
They are the first Spanish players to win a Paralympic medal in any wheelchair tennis category, a feat which drew acclaim from far and wide, including congratulations on social media from four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz.
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“Martin and I, we’ve broken down barriers in that sense,” said Caverzaschi, who was born without his right femur and knee. “In Spain, we’re very integrated with able-bodied players.
“They see us train and sometimes we even train together – not with Carlos Alcaraz as he would beat the shit out of us. We’ve put wheelchair tennis on the map, and they really respect us as tennis players.
“Forget about disability and overcoming adversity, but as tennis players, and we’ve been knocking on the door for a while on the court. We have people behind us, our teams, who have ben pushing for years.
“We’ve been slowly improving and this is a good breakthrough. A bronze medal confirms our trajectory but we’re going to go for more. Martin and I are very ambitious.
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“Hopefully also we can inspire a lot of kids. We need more kids and more women in Spain playing wheelchair tennis. We have solid support from the institutions and it’s improving but we need to take it a step further. Hopefully this kickstarts another cycle.”
Caverzaschi and De la Puente’s victory sees Spain become the 15th nation to win a Paralympic wheelchair tennis medal since the sport became a full-medal event at the 1992 Paralympic Games in Barcelona.
It could get even better, however. De la Puente faces Argentina’s Gustavo Fenandez on Court Philippe Chatrier tomorrow for a bronze medal in the men’s singles. That said, his doubles triumph was the only matter on his mind.
“I think we can say that Roland Garros is becoming Spanish now,” said De la Puente, who was born with several leg deformities. “We’re happy. We’re just two kids who are achieving things they’ve been dreaming of for so long and we’re enjoying ourselves.
“We’re just going to keep pushing. We know that we want to be in the next Paralympic Games for the gold medal match, but we’re going to take this as a good win for us. We are very happy.”