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Sunday, 03/12/2006 8:10:14 PM

Sunday, March 12, 2006 8:10:14 PM

Post# of 71
An Interview with Gregory Leperdi



Jan 26 2006

Gregory Leperdi, a Paralympic athlete, his left thigh amputated because of a road accident, has won several first places in Italian Athletics Championships between 2001 and 2004 and now also plays in the Italian National Ice Sledge Hockey team among the Tori Seduti, 2004/2005 Italian Champions.

SURNAME: Leperdi
NAME: Gregory Brian Alexis
DATE OF BIRTH: 24/6/1973
SPORT: Ice Sledge Hockey and Athletics
BEST RESULT: 2004/2005 Italian Champion with the Tori Seduti + several first places in the Italian Athletics Championships between 2001 and 2004
OCCUPATION: Clinical Research Associate, I am responsible for Italy and France for the company Medifacts International.I take care of different clinical studies and medical aids for pharmaceutical companies.
EDUCATION: Degree in Pharmacy
CLUB: Sport D +, but I play for Tori Seduti
KIND OF DISABILITY: Amputation of left thigh (Road accident)
NATIONALITY: Italian


What motivated you to want to participate in the Paralympic Winter Games, and what are your objectives for the forthcoming Torino 2006 Paralympic Winter Games?

A - The first thing for me is to be there! It will be incredible to compete with the best. Then it is certainly fundamental to be prepared or better to believe in victory until the last second.


How did you begin to practice sport competitively and why did you choose hockey?

A – Actually I always practiced sports. Before the accident I played basket competitively for 10 years, besides athletics between the ages of 9 and 15.And I enjoyed myself on my snowboard, besides on mountain bikes, tennis, five-a-side soccer.After the accident, I started off with athletics again with the 100m, the long jump, the high jump, the javelin, the discus and the hammer. Then I moved also into ice sledge hockey, I tried it and liked it. In the end I missed team sport a bit after the accident.


What favoured you most in undertaking competitive activity and what has caused you most problems?

A – Let's say that I was helped by the fact of being an athlete also before the accident. Whilst some problem stems from a lack of time, it would be nice to have 36/hour days, but I think that's everyone's problem!



What's the team spirit like among you?

A - Recently it is growing, even though many are too counter-productive. They think they are going to do an Olympic Games' catwalk at home. I instead think that it is good to be realistic and recognise that all the other teams have more experience than us, but as I said, to be able to win, you must first believe it!



Certainly to be in good shape requires great efforts and constancy, but also finding the time to dedicate to sport, how much do you train and at what times of day?

A - I usually train in the evening, but it's not easy to find the time. Fortunately, the company for which I work, Medifacts International, which I officially thank, gives me the possibility of working part-time, so I can find the time to train more.In any case, an ideal week of mine has 2 track trainings, one match, 2 gym training sessions and one in the pool. Then the encouragement from fans increases my performance on the pitch. It is a reason to give even more.



Do you think that the Torino 2006 Winter Paralympic Games could be a good occasion to give greater visibility to sport for people with a disability?

A - Certainly and I hope that it may be the beginning for its practice by an ever greater number of Paralympic Games' athletes. Sport is good for you, and not only those with a disability!



Can you tell us about an entertaining or pleasant episode whilst doing sport?

A – Of course! It was truly exciting when I got back on ski slopes with my snowboard. To the extent that at the end of the day, the foot of my prosthesis had rotated by nearly 180 degrees!



Alessia Mangiapane

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