In 1996 Caroline MacDonald was injured, causing damage to her spinal cord and paralysis from the chest down. As a life-long sports fan, Caroline was determined not to let it hold her back.
A chance article on the BBC local news about a wheelchair tennis tournament inspired Caroline to go along and find out a bit more. Immediately captured by the positive stories and support, Caroline found her new passion and community.
From here, wheelchair tennis has taken Caroline to tournaments across the country and beyond…
“I entered the Montfermeil Open ITF Futures Tournament, 17 to 20 October 2024, on the outskirts of Paris. Before entering I felt like the underdog, as I’ve only entered one international tournament since 2018 due to illness and injury, but I believed that I needed to take the leap back into international competition. My nerves were not helped when my luggage, with all my clothes, rackets and toiletries went missing enroute and didn’t turn up for three days - I had to play with borrowed rackets and wearing borrowed clothes.
Somehow, I got to the finals, beating some very strong players, which as an unranked player was both unexpected and exciting. In the final I came up against a formidable Paralympian from the Netherlands, Jinte Bos, ranked 22 in the world and although she won, I learnt a lot from the experience. I came away feeling much more confident and ready for the next set of tournaments.
The tournament itself was a fantastic event, all of us athletes were very well looked after by the local community in Montfermeil as well as the French Tennis Federation. The local people came out in numbers to see us play, and the players’ gala dinner was a lovely evening with the best French food and wine. I also found some time to sightsee in Paris between matches, visiting Notre Dame and the Champs Elysee.
I was so chuffed to read that I’ve gone from being unranked to a world ranking of 109 in just one tournament. Hopefully now I’ll find it easier to be accepted in other tournaments, as the highest ranking players who apply to enter a tournament are automatically included in the draw.
My latest competition in Oxford on 1-3 November went really well, unfortunately I didn’t get quite get to the final this time but I did manage to win some matches and I’m delighted with how this year has gone – I can’t tell you what a difference my grant has made, I’ve really found the joy in competing again and my wellbeing is soaring as a result.
We wish Caroline every success in the future and will keep you posted with her exploits.
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