ZETCHIRI Linda

General
FAMILY MEMORY
She dedicated her first round victory in women's singles at the 2015 World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, to the memory of her grandfather, who died two months before the event. "I thought of him as soon as I won because we had a very strong connection. He was always supporting me in my sport and I know he is supporting me still. He loved the fact that I play sport and was always cutting out the newspaper articles about me. I wanted to dedicate the win to him as soon as the match was over." (bwfbadminton.org, 10 Aug 2015)

STAYING BULGARIAN
She is part ethnic Albanian and part Italian, but remains committed to Bulgaria. She has been invited to compete for other countries but has always declined. "I think there is a right place for every one of us and I have never felt a need to represent any other nation. In sports, as in so many other things, one has to compete with heart and soul for the country one is representing, otherwise things just won't turn out right. I have always preferred to put my whole heart into the things I do." (bnr.bg, 15 Jun 2016)

GOING IT ALONE
At age 15 a Danish coach discovered her talent for badminton and she left her parents' home in Bulgaria to go to Denmark. "The step I took was no easy thing, but was only natural for me if I wanted to make my childhood dream come true. To begin with it was difficult, but if one aims high, if one has dreams, one does not brood on the difficulties and one thinks of the challenges." (bnr.bg, 15 Jun 2016)