• 2 months ago

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00:00She's been training for this moment for over 10 years.
00:04France's Brianna Vidae has her eyes firmly set on a fencing medal
00:08at this year's Paralympic Games.
00:12I'm just excited to be there,
00:14excited to show my sport to the whole of France
00:17and excited to beat my rivals as well.
00:21Brianna was born with a club foot,
00:23but as a child she trained in traditional fencing.
00:26It's always been a family sport for her,
00:28a passion she shared with her brothers and sisters
00:30and even her partner, a fencing master himself.
00:38As a teenager, competitions became tougher
00:40and the pain caused by her disability soon became unbearable.
00:44At the age of 13, she chose to take up wheelchair fencing.
00:49When I got into the chair and was able to fence without my foot hurting
00:53and with my arms just aching like a normal fencer,
00:56I said to myself,
00:57that's the feeling I should be getting from fencing.
01:02Ten years on, Brianna has become one of the greatest French fencers
01:05in her discipline,
01:06which involves the wheelchairs being fixed to the floor.
01:10But excelling in Paralympic fencing isn't enough to pay the bills.
01:13Even just a few days before the start of the Games,
01:16Brianna was still receiving patients at her practice
01:19to treat their foot disorders.
01:22She's wanted to be a podiatrist ever since receiving treatment herself.
01:27I didn't necessarily think about it for myself
01:30and think, oh, I'll be able to help myself,
01:32but I did think if I can get something out of it,
01:35then maybe I can give something to people,
01:37being particularly sensitive about it, and that's what I liked.
01:41Brianna set up her own practice to have more control
01:44over a particularly packed schedule.
01:46When consultations are over,
01:48she trades in her white coat for a foil and mask.
01:51And her hard work could be about to pay off.
01:57That's great, Bri.
01:58Honestly, you've got rhythm, you've got the skills,
02:00and we're using them, period.
02:02It'll take someone really a lot better than you to beat you.
02:06From the 3rd to the 7th of September,
02:08Brianna will be out of office.
02:10She'll be taking up arms at Paris' Grand Ballet
02:12to compete for a Paralympic medal.

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