First staged in 2009 in Brasilia, then in 2010 and 2011 in Rio de Janeiro; now for the 2022 Brazilian Para Open, play commencing in the three day tournament on Friday 7th October, there is a new venue, a very new venue.
A Factor 20 tournament for World ranking purposes, the Brazilian Paralympic Training Centre, opened in 2016, located in the South Zone of São Paulo, is the venue.
Overall, for training purposes, competition and exchanges with athletes from other nations, a total of 15 Paralympic sports are based at the premises.
In addition to table tennis, the sports represented are: athletics, basketball, fencing, rugby, wheelchair tennis, bocce, swimming, blind football, football, goal ball, weightlifting, judo, triathlon and sitting volleyball.
Furthermore, there is accommodation for 300 people as well as a cafeteria, laundry, administrative sector and auditoriums.
Now over a decade since the tournament was last staged; four players successful 11 years ago return.
Brazil’s Aloisio Lima Junior, the men’s singles class 1 winner in Rio de Janeiro appears on the entry list as does Argentina’s Gabriel Copola, successful in men’s singles class 3.
Likewise, in the women’s singles events, Joyce Oliveira, the class 4-5 winner competes as does Bruna Alexandre, the class 9-10 winner.
Notably in the intervening years, Bruna Alexandre was a bonze medallst at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, a silver medallist more recently last year in Tokyo.
Also, successful in Tokyo and from Brazil, a bronze medallist in women’s singles class 2, Catia Oliveira competes.
A host of notable South American names on duty, also, there is a more than worthy challenge from France, Esteban Herrault and Lucie Hautière make the journey.
Furthermore, both are players in form; at the recently concluded ITTF Para Greek Open, Esteban Herrault was a men’s singles class 6 bronze medallist, Lucie Hautière won women’s singles class 8 .
Overall 70 men and 29 women compete in São Paulo.
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- Brazil Para Open 2022: Live Stream from São Paulo
