10 Athletes who, despite the difficulties, went far beyond what they thought about them

Olympic athletes are really dedicated people. All of them are proof that strength comes from within, in addition to the fact that, with commitment, it is possible to overcome obstacles or pain. Even if sport is not exactly “your thing”, there are some stories behind these people and their sporting achievements that are, in addition to surprising, inspiring. And, without a doubt, it is worth knowing.

From young prodigies to seasoned champions, we at awesome.clubwe chose to tell 10 stories of athletes who, despite the difficulties they have already gone through, presented unforgettable performances.

Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade reached the greatest moment of her career at the 2020 Olympic Games, becoming the first gymnast from the country to win two medals in the same edition.

However, the journey to the podium was not an easy one. The athlete overcame almost the ‘impossible’ to reach the Olympics. She repeatedly suffered various injuries and at one point even thought about giving up gymnastics. Look what she achieved by not abandoning her dreams! 🇧🇷

Like Rebeca Andrade, Bruno Fratus also won a medal at the Tokyo Olympics. But that’s not all they have in common. The Brazilian swimmer also has a history of fighting and overcoming challenges.

In 2016, at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the athlete was looking forward to winning a medal. But it didn’t go as expected, and that caused him problems like anxiety, which made it difficult to resume the pace for the new Olympic cycle. In 2021, Bruno took bronze home. Aêêê 👏

Another overcoming story worth gold is that of surfer Ítalo Ferreira. The first Olympic surfing champion in history had a financially constrained childhood. He started surfing on a Styrofoam cap that his father used to preserve his catch. But thanks to his focus, dedication and professionalism, Ítalo managed to reach one of the highest points of his career at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.

After surprising the world at the Rio Games, when he won the gold medal and broke the Olympic record in the men’s pole vault, Thiago revealed that his life became a “hustle”.

In Tokyo, Thiago Braz stood out, once again, with a bronze medal, managing to maintain the Olympic record registered in 2016. In a press conference, the athlete said: “To me, this bronze tastes like gold. Everyone who is with me and followed my difficulties is feeling the same taste I’m feeling. Bronze medal, but it’s also gold”.

The man from São Paulo won a silver medal in skateboarding, in the street modality. But a curious fact is that Kelvin switched from surfing to skateboarding due to trauma. He started skating with an improvised track at home, with a mini ramp with a few obstacles that went from the kitchen to the garage.

“I came from a very small town, which did not practice the sport. My father taking me to the slopes on the weekends, police officer… it was really hard to juggle all that, you know? So it was a claw, you know?”, he said in an interview.

Aquatic marathon runner Ana Marcela achieved an old dream in her career at the Tokyo Games: winning gold. To reach the podium, however, the Brazilian went through several types of obstacles: she overcame traumas in London-2012 and Rio-2016, faced a complicated surgery and changed coaches.

“Each one gives a name, but they call it ‘frustration’, because it wasn’t a podium, Ana Marcela didn’t get a medal. Arriving here (in Tokyo) with maturity, a conscience, a much greater and very different ambition. Like it or not, I’m already 29 (years old), let’s create this. More experience brought me to that (gold) medal. Doing a quick recap, that would be it. He is a much more mature person and aware of what he needed to do”, he said in an interview.

The Dutch woman has a life story marked by difficulties. Born in Adama, Ethiopia, she had to leave her country at the age of 15 and arrived as a refugee in Holland, where she was temporarily housed in a shelter for minors. Until her athletic abilities brought her under the tutelage of coach Honore Hoedt in 2012.

In 2021, Sifan became one of the great protagonists of the Tokyo Games, as she was the first runner to reach the podium in the 1,500m, 5,000m and 10,000m events in the same Olympic edition.

In 2016, Gianmarco Tamberi was prevented from competing at the Rio Olympics, but after a difficult rehabilitation, the Italian returned to compete again, but without confidence in jumping. After mistakes in every attempt at a championship in Paris, Gianmarco locked himself in a hotel room and didn’t want to talk to anyone.

That’s when Mutaz Barshim, a professional partner, entered the Italian’s life and, after a long conversation between the two, Tamberi reestablished the confidence and hope that he lacked in the sport. At the Tokyo Games, the two friends shared the gold medal in the men’s high jump.

The Portuguese won the bronze medal in Judo. However, his life story is worth gold. Jorge Fonseca fought an illness and overcame it. In 2016, at the Rio Olympics, he was back on the mat, but was eliminated from the competition in the first round.

After much dedication, he got his first Olympic medal in Tokyo. “This medal is a reflection of everything I’ve done, my work and dedication in training”, said the judoka, in an interview with the club to which he belongs.

The 13-year-old skater demonstrated that you don’t need to have lived a lot to reach the podium and have a story of overcoming obstacles to tell. Despite her young age, she went through some turbulent times during her preparation for the Olympics. Even with the scare, the British recovered in a short time and returned to training, winning the gold medal at the skate park in Tokyo.

Did you already know about these “other sides” of athletes? Do you know a narrative of overcoming someone else that we did not mention in the article? If so, write in the comments so we know how it all happened.