Donald Ramphadi and Lucas Sithole are the first Paralympic wheelchair tennis duo to win a medal for South Africa and the African continent.
In the quad doubles bronze medal event at the Paris Paralympics on Wednesday, Ramphadi and Sithole defeated Leandro Pena and Ymanitu Silva, who were vying to become the first Brazilian players to win a medal in wheelchair tennis. The match ended in a tight set tiebreak, 6-2 4-6 10-8.
Ramphadi, who is making his Paralympic debut in Paris 2024, said, “This is my best moment. It is always a big deal for me to carry the nation’s flag on my shoulders, and to put South Africa on the Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis map, I will never, ever stop being proud of this moment.”
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“I will talk about it until my last day,” he said, per the International Tennis Federation.
He added, “This venue is something special. Last year I won my first Grand Slam here [quad doubles title with Andy Lapthorne] on my birthday, now I have a Paralympic bronze medal. For me, to he here and winning a medal is crazy – I am just going to enjoy the moment.”
Ramphadi was physically fit but developed osteogenesis imperfecta, also known as brittle bone disease, at the age of 12.
His mobility decreased during the next five years, eventually rendering him unable to walk. It was a very trying time, but things gradually improved after his mother urged him to begin walking using a cane she had acquired from a neighboring forest.
Still, his condition persisted, and personal tragedy struck when his mother died, leaving Ramphadi to care for his two younger sisters as head of the home.
While attending Filadelfia Secondary School in Soshanguve at the time, Ramphadi’s enthusiasm for wheelchair tennis blossomed, even though his life remained unstable in the years that followed.
Ramphadi, now a father, had his life transformed forever when, at the age of 25, he received a phone call from Tennis South Africa regarding the quad division classification in wheelchair tennis. From there, he established a career that has led to this point.
On the other hand, Sithole is not a newcomer. He placed fourth in the quad singles at Tokyo 2020.
The 37-year-old was raised in Kwa-Zulu Natal, in the eastern region of South Africa. When he was twelve, he was assisting the uncle of a friend who drove a freight train and was returning to the train after transferring lines successfully when the unfortunate incident occurred.
In a tragic turn of events, Sithole lost both of his legs and his right arm when he went under the running wheels while attempting to join the train again.
Sithole discovered wheelchair tennis after years of despair, which gave him much-needed goals and comfort.
Since then, he has participated in five Grand Slam events. He won the quad singles title at the US Open in 2013 and the doubles title at the Australian Open in 2016, and he also now holds a bronze medal from the Paralympics.
He said of his recent accomplishment, “Paralympic bronze medallist sounds really good. It is our first big medal playing together and we’re very happy to write history. It is the first Paralympic wheelchair tennis medal for Africa and we’re very happy.
“It is very big for both of us but also the people of South Africa, and the kids who look up to us – I hope it inspires them. I was so happy to play with Donald today. He brought his A-game, even though he was nervous and made double faults – he owes me a whiskey.
“But one of the most important things was just having fun and that’s what we did and how we won. We were here to win today, not just represent. We made mistakes – we’re human beings – but we kept hitting those balls and we’re so happy.”
With this win, South Africa is now the 13th country to earn a medal at the Paralympics since wheelchair tennis was included as a full-medal event in 1992.
