My Paralympic Memory: Michael Jeremiasz

To be No. 1 in the world was something, but I think the best souvenir and what people will remember me for is being a Paralympian. Gold is the top of the top. Being No. 1 is tougher because you have to be the best on average in all your tournaments in the year, but when you get a gold you are on top of the world. That’s what Stephane Houdet, my partner and I, were showing in Beijing. We were doing a pyramid sign and showing that we were at the top of this pyramid which was representing the world.

That made it even more special. I literally then partied for 32 days in a row, every single night I was out partying and celebrating.

For a Paralympian, London was special. There were full crowds, all the stadiums were packed and they were enthusiastic and loving it. It was live on Channel 4, coverage from morning to late evening. You go on the streets everywhere and people say, “Hey, look, professional athletes”, not professional disabled athletes. No matter what we looked like, we were all Olympians and Paralympians and honestly that was something special.

In my career, it would be in my top four emotions. Winning the French Nationals one year after my accident was very intense. Being No. 1 in the world was something huge, the gold medal in Beijing and my first medal in the singles in Athens completes my top four.

Twenty-eight people came to support me in Athens. The best was the reaction of my parents and my brothers when I won. There were so many tears, like, “Damn, we almost lost him four years ago and now he’s a Paralympic medallist!” I wasn’t emotional because I managed the accident and the disability quite quickly. After just two or three years, I was ready to fight this life. After that it was very intense for a full year because I just kept playing better and better. You could see the pride of my entourage. They were really happy for me and proud of the achievement in such a short time to be able to bounce back after such an accident and be a top athlete.