Elizabeth Rodrigues Gomes

Started: She began training in Para athletics in 2012 at the Fast Wheels club in Santos, Brazil. She previously competed in wheelchair basketball and retired in 2010. (atribuna.com.br, 18 Jul 2016; Athlete, 23 Oct 2015; lmc.org.br, 26 May 2015) Reason: "It brought me quality of life and professionalism." (Athlete, 23 Oct 2015) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (cnnbrasil.com.br, 31 Aug 2021) Milestones: At the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo she was the oldest athlete from any nation or sport to win a gold medal, triumphing in the women's F53 discus at age 56 years and 227 days. (SportsDeskOnline, 26 Sep 2023) Awards: She and swimmer Gabriel Geraldo dos Santos Araujo were Brazil's flag bearers at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (medias.paris2024.org, 28 Aug 2024) In 2021 she received the Braz Cubas Merit Order Medal from the municipal chamber of the city of Santos in Brazil. (santaportal.com.br, 25 Nov 2021) She received the 2019 Best Athlete of the Year award from the Brazilian Paralympic Committee. (olimpiadatododia.com.br, 18 Dec 2019) Additional Info: PREVIOUS OCCUPATION, OTHER SPORTS She worked as a municipal guard in Santos, Brazil, and played volleyball at the city's Civil Servant Games prior to being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1993. She began playing wheelchair basketball in 1996 at Reboucas Sports and Recreation Complex in Santos. "They told me I couldn't do anything else. I did not accept that, I had a very active life and loved sports. In 1996 I got to know wheelchair basketball and finally found a reason to go on with my life." (atribuna.com.br, 21 Dec 2018; lmc.org.br, 26 May 2015)