Home » World » Sport, Alfonso Jiménez’s refuge

Sport, Alfonso Jiménez’s refuge

Alfonso Jiménez knows no limits. There are no borders between him and sport, the young man from Malaga does not allow anything to separate him from his great passion. He was born in Torremolinos, and a short time later his family moved to Melilla and his life began there. From a very young age he practiced soccer, basketball, futsal … At just thirteen years old he was already runner-up in 3×3 basketball in Seville, later he continued with football at Gimnástico Melilla, where he played for many years with Munir, until a few months ago goalkeeper from Málaga and friend from Torremolinos: «We played in the same team until we were 18 years old. When this is over I want to go to Turkey to see him, “he says.

When he was 23 years old, he returned to his homeland to study the cycle of ‘Imaging for Diagnosis and Nuclear Medicine’ and after this the higher degree of ‘Radiotherapy and Dosimetry’. He was presented to tests such as the ‘101 kilometers of Ronda’ or the ‘African Legion Race‘in Melilla, he spent a lot of time cycling. But while studying the last year of the higher grade, he began to feel the first symptoms: “My sacrum was starting to hurt, my leg felt strange …”, recalls the young man. In 2014, a year after the first pain, they began to do tests and they diagnosed him with ‘Transvera myelitis’. «I was losing the strength in my legs and they gave me several treatments. They fought to stop it, but nothing could be done, ”explains Alfonso Jiménez.

Non-stop training

January 2017. Three years after the start to seek the solution, one night the Malaga man could no longer move his legs and they transferred him to the Regional Hospital of Malaga (formerly Carlos Haya). “I witnessed how my legs fell asleep,” says the young man. From there, four months came without leaving the center, they continued with the tests and Alfonso was already beginning to prepare for what was coming: «I had many unknowns in my head, it was hard for me to think that you are going to stay in a wheelchair, but I had I have to start getting used to the idea », he says. Not even there he could stop and put sport aside, he needed to feel alive and be active: “I used two-liter bottles to do weights and I also trained with abs,” recalls the man from Malaga.

«They believe that because you are in a wheelchair you cannot do anything. I have lived one life and I have the pleasure of living the second », he clarifies

He was transferred to the National Hospital of Paraplegics in Toledo in May of that same year for all kinds of teachings and treatments. «I did not see it as a hospital, I saw it as a campus and, in addition, it had the sports area, ”Alfonso Jiménez said with a laugh. And it is that this area would become his best ally during his months of stay there and also with Josemi, the «sugar cane monitor». He had to wait two weeks from his arrival to be able to play sports, but the Torremolinos did not comply with that rule and he remembers it: “I had been doing nothing for four months and I was climbing the walls. I started with ping pong and continued with tennis. The rehabilitation was half an hour and I stayed three, they had to come to kick me out, “he confesses.

One afternoon he noticed that there were badminton classes And, as he dared with any sport and wanted to continue to surpass himself, he began his journey in this sport. Days later, the coordinator of the Spanish para-badminton team, Miguel Ángel Polo, told him: “Hey look, you play very well. You could call the Benalmádena club for when you return, continue there. Thus began in 2017 a story between the Benalmádena Badminton Club and Alfonso Jiménez in which they are still united.

Energy kick

After being in Toledo from May to September He returned to Malaga and did not hesitate to go to the club to be interested in badminton training. “David Franco was my first coach for the first five months and in April 2018 he had the first championship,” explains Alfonso. The time came and he won the Spanish WH1 Championship, in doubles. “That gave me a boost of energy and it has already become my obsession,” says the athlete.

Alfonso Jiménez has been international on several occasions and champion with the national parabádminton team.

The training sessions continued and the Brazilian Internationals arrived, where they finished third at the individual level and in the doubles quarter-finals. “Have you only been in a wheelchair for eight months?” His surprised international colleagues told him. The objectives continued and the Fighting for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games was a goal: more than five hours a day of training, a week in the High Performance Center of Valencia, everything ready to play the next championship in Turkey. «I broke my ribs in March and in April I had the Spanish championship, I played it and I got injured again. I missed the whole season, ”he recalls.

He recovered in December 2019 and was only able to play for a few months. “The pandemic has arrived,” adds the international with sighs. After all, he went back to training this summer, but now he doesn’t dare: “My mother is older and I’m scared,” says Alfonso. Now his only goal is for everything to pass and to be able to return to training with the Benalmadense club, meanwhile, he studies at the IES Arroyo de la Miel TAFAD (Higher Technician in Teaching and Social Sports Animation). “Sport is a sensation to which I am hooked,” he clarifies. Now with 31 years it is clear: «People believe that because you are in a wheelchair you can’t do anything. I have lived one life and I have the pleasure of living the second », Jiménez remarks.

At the end of 2017 he began training with the Benalmádena Badminton Club.
At the end of 2017 he began training with the Benalmádena Badminton Club.photo-author"/>

– .

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.