Gaza's Fadi Aldeeb sparks 'inclusion revolution' as lone Palestinian Paralympian

The 2024 Paris Paralympics is a place of strength and accessibility. In addition to fostering important conversations of inclusion, it is important for the world to see Para athletes showcasing their sporting pursuits at the highest level.

It's also vital to know the stories of the Para athletes, to listen and learn the ways in which the wider sport community can better support disabled athletes. 

During the stunning opening ceremony at the Place de la Concorde, International Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons said he hoped Paris would mark the start of an "inclusion revolution."

One of the Paralympians leading his own revolution is 39-year-old Fadi Aldeeb, a shot putter from Gaza. Aldeeb is the only member of the Paralympic team from Palestine in Paris.

As a youth, Aldeeb played volleyball, soccer and basketball. In 2001, at 18, he says he was shot in the back by an Israeli sniper during the Second Intifada. After spending over a year in different hospitals, he was left paralyzed due to fractures in his T11 and T12 vertebrae.

But Aldeeb went on to try adaptive sports and became proficient in wheelchair basketball and Para table tennis. He also competed in various disciplines in Para athletics such as javelin and discus, winning six medals at international competitions in Tunisia. He played wheelchair basketball in Turkey and Greece and now lives in France where he trains.

There is tremendous pride in representation of one's nation — something that Aldeeb does not take lightly.

He spoke to CBC's Day 6 about being the only Palestinian delegate, being Gazan and carrying the flag.

"I'm not playing for myself, I am here for 11 million Palestinians inside of Palestine and outside of Palestine. I am here to raise the flag of Palestine here in Paris … and to give the message we are still here. We are still alive. We are still asking about freedom and we still need the same human rights."

LISTEN | Aldeeb joins CBC's Day 6:

Day 65:14More than 20 years after he was paralyzed by an an Israeli sniper, Fadi Deeb is carrying the Palestinian flag at the Paralympic Games

Fadi Deeb has used a wheelchair since 2001, when he was shot in the back by an Israeli sniper at a protest in Gaza during the second Intifada. Now, he's competing as a shot-putter in the Paralympic Games, and the only member of the Palestinian Paralympic Team.

Aldeeb told the Australian Associated Press that he was only given 28 days to prepare for the F55 shot put competition, a sport in which he actually hasn't competed for three years. When the Palestinian Paralympic Committee called him, he said yes immediately.

"There is a responsibility on my shoulders," said Aldeeb, who placed 10th in his 11-man competition on Friday. "I'm not doing it for my career or for my name, this is for the 45,000 people killed in Palestine [in the last 11 months] and the 100,000 people who have been injured."

According to UNICEF, Gaza has more child amputees in a conflict cohort than any other in pediatric history. There are more than 89,000 injured people in the region.

Another Para sport group, the Gaza Sunbirds, aims to do just that. While Sunbirds Para cyclist Ali al-Dali did not make it to Paris, there are always those, like Aldeeb, who light the way for others.

Aldeeb is a role model for thousands of people all over the world. Resilience and determination are not words strong enough to describe his fortitude and commitment to sport and to the future of Palestinian and Para sport. 

While Aldeeb placed 10th, his distance of 8.81 metres represented his season's best — barriers or blockades won't stop him. 

For Aldeeb, giving up is not an option. His version of an inclusion revolution is to remind the entire world through sport that Palestinians deserve to thrive — they deserve a chance to rebuild their lives in sport and through sport. He won't stop and no one should stop him.

Whether the vehicle of that message is his words, his flag, or the object he throws, Aldeeb will not give up. His existence is resistance, and his athleticism is part of the revolution.