If you hesitate, you're too late

Nalani Buob was born with spina bifida, but has found her self-confidence in sports., The 20-year-old will be in action at the Paralympics in Tokyo next week.

The moments on the school playground were difficult. While all the other children were jumping around doing crazy things, Nalani Buob was the only one sitting in a wheelchair. The realisation hit her with full force. She would never be able to do what the other children can do.
"It took me a long time to accept that," she says. She is now 20 years old and has long since put the crisis behind her. She no longer speculates that she might one day be able to stand on her feet. There used to be this quiet hope, but that only pulled her down. "I sometimes ask myself what it would be like if I could walk, but that's just a mental game, I wouldn't call it 'hope'," says Nalani, who likes to be addressed by her first name.

Nalani was born in February 2001. With an open back, known as spina bifida. Depending on the severity, people affected by this range from hardly impaired to very severely impaired. Nalani’s leg functions are affected, but her upper body is not. In a TV report, her mother once related how she woke up the day after the birth and realised that her daughter's spina bifida was not just a bad dream. She was shocked. But then she looked at the child and said to herself: "We can do this."

Track and field athlete Sofia Gonzalez (left) with Nalani Buob at the uiniform drop-off for the Paralympics in Luterbach.                 
"I don't see myself as a disabled person".     
It takes a lot of coordinative skill: Nalani Buob at the Swiss Open in Geneva in mid-July.
Photos:  Ennio Leanza /  Gabriel Monnet/Swiss Paralympic /   Bastien Gallay/Freshfocus

Mother Cecilia comes from India, father Urs from Willisau. The two have settled with their family in Baar, and Nalani has a brother, Dario. She started wheelchair tennis when she was ten years old: the sport gave her a feeling she hadn’t known before. "When it comes to sports, I was suddenly no longer the only one with a wheelchair,” she says. ”The disability receded into the background and I was able to celebrate successes. And I've learned to stick to something." Today, her disability is no longer an issue in everyday life. She commutes independently between her home in Baar and her training locations in Nottwil and Sursee by public transport and on a hand-bike. "I don't see myself as a disabled person," she says.

On the field, everything happens at the same time
In wheelchair tennis, the wheelchair is constantly in motion, because you would otherwise have to start again and again, which would be very exhausting. After each stroke, you drive yourself back a bit to get into position. The rallies have to be anticipated, and you always have to guess in advance what to do on the court. "If you hesitate, you're too late," says Nalani. The coordinative requirements are enormous. The chair is manoeuvred with both hands, while one hand also holds the racket. "There is so much that you have to do it at the same time," she says. The ball is allowed to bounce twice before the shot is played, and the second time may also be outside the field. Otherwise, the usual tennis rules apply.

Nalani has risen higher and higher in the world rankings, and is currently number 25. She belongs to the extended world elite, even though she wouldn’t say so herself. She already experienced success as a junior, becoming the junior world champion in singles and doubles at the age of 16, and won the two titles again two years later. She has focussed on Paralympic participation in recent years. She is therefore completing a sport-optimised version of the commercial apprenticeship. This apprenticeship lasts four years instead of just three, but she thereby has more time for sport. She is working her apprenticeship at her father's shop, a furniture store in Steinhausen.

It needs a bit of luck
For Nalani, the Paralympics (24 August to 5 September 2021) are all about surviving the first round, which takes place on 27 August. As she is not seeded, she could initially come up against a player from the top 8. She will fly to Tokyo on Thursday evening, together with national coach Eva Stutzki, who was once a world-class player herself. "For me, it's also about the experience. I want to be able to enjoy these Paralympics," she says. But it won’t only remain an experience for her own scrap book, but will also be a preparation for Paris 2024, when she intends to be a medal candidate.

Precious metal or not. It seems that Nalani is already a winner before the games begin!

She wanted to set up a foundation, even as a child
When Nalani Buob visited India as a child, her desire to make a difference and help the people there grew. Above all, she wanted to bring children with disabilities closer to the sport through which she has learned so much. She therefore founded the "The first serve"foundation. With the money collected, Nalani has already organised several wheelchair tennis camps in India, her mother's home country. The foundation provides sports wheelchairs, rackets and training equipment for the children and pays the court fees. "I don't want to turn the children into tennis professionals, but give them something for life."say Nalani.