Turkey embraces champion Sümeyye

ISTANBUL

Turkish social media users have applauded Sümeyye Boyacı, the Turkish athlete who bagged gold at the 2018 World Para Swimming European Championships held in Ireland last week. 

Sümeyye, born without arms, won the 50 meters backstroke race with a time of 45.21 seconds.         

 “I was inspired with the fish that swim with no arms,” said the champion.

In a congratulatory message, Turkey’s Youth and Sports Minister Mehmet Muharrem Kasapoğlu said: “We are proud of Sümeyye’s victory.”         

In 2017, she ranked fourth at the 2017 Para Sport Festival with a time of 46.57 seconds, missing a medal by only split seconds.

The life story of the 15-year-old athlete from the Central Anatolian province of Eskişehir also went viral.

The painted pictures for Russian fairy tales, the broadcaster noted.

She began using her legs to paint pictures when she was six, CNNTürk noted, adding that she also had a bone issue in her hip.

 “I have never given up,” she says in a former interview. “I have overcome all hurdles.”