MORELLI Efrem

Classification
S4, SB3, SM4 (IPC, 14 Mar 2021)

Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries (ilfattoquotidiano.it, 28 Jan 2017)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (Athlete, 03 Dec 2017)

Impairment Details
At age 20 he was involved in an accident during a motocross race, which resulted in paraplegia. (Athlete, 03 Dec 2017; efremmorelli.it, 20 Nov 2009)

General
A NEW BEGINNING
His first passion in sport was motocross, which he took up at age 14. He participated in three European championships and won one national and three regional titles prior to his accident. "During a race I had a serious accident. It was the end of a dream cultivated for years, and the beginning of a hard period for me. Doctors recommended aqua therapy and I started going to the pool. I had to learn to swim again from scratch, but I started swimming quite well. I began to get passionate about it, and by pure chance I came in contact with the president of my club and I was asked to do some training with them. I found it to be a quiet and pleasant environment, but at the same time serious and professional - just the way I like it. For me, this was a new beginning, or perhaps the continuation of a dream interrupted a few years earlier." (Facebook page, 18 Aug 2018; quadleaks.com, 31 Mar 2014; mxcenter.it, 18 Jun 2013; fmiquad.it, 18 Apr 2012; efremmorelli.it, 18 Nov 2009)

EXPERIENCE AND UNITY
He has two tattoos of the Olympic rings, one on each shoulder blade, to commemorate competing at the 2008 and 2012 Paralympic Games. In 2019 he said he was one of the oldest members of the Italian Paralympic swimming team, and that team unity is the most important aspect he tries to cultivate in the group. "I am the oldest in the group, but it doesn't weigh on me at all. On the contrary, I feel fitter now than I did a few years ago. What is important for me is being part of a team that is truly united, and not just in words. It is necessary for things to go well, and is a fundamental basis for success. If there is no team unity, inevitably there will be problems. [National] coach Riccardo Vernole knows this well and has always focused on unity in the group." (ilfaroonline.it, 15 Sep 2019)