2023-10-09 20:28:00
Paralympic athlete Daniel Rodrigues, 36 years old, is expected to arrive in Belo Horizonte early this Tuesday morning (10). The miner had just arrived in Israel, last Saturday (07), when the war between the terrorist group Hamas and the state of Israel began.
According to Natália Oliveira, Daniel’s wife, the family has been experiencing days of anguish. The athlete’s wife said that he announced that he arrived, had a coffee and soon after said that he was at war. Daniel had left the capital of Minas Gerais to compete in a tournament in Israel. “He arrived, said that everything was calm and with the time difference, here it was already dawn and there it was late. A little later he sent me a message that there was war.”
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In addition to Daniel, there are two other Brazilian athletes who left the hotel as soon as they heard about the attacks and headed to the airport. The tennis player went to compete in the Israel Open, a tournament that is part of the qualifiers for the Paralympic Games, which will take place in Paris in 2023. The athlete had disembarked in the city of Tel Aviv a few hours before the attack began. “When he arrived, the tournament staff announced that the tournament was canceled and they suggested that everyone return to their country of origin”
Last Sunday (08), Daniel managed to leave Israel and went to Thailand. Natália says the expectation is that he will return well, “my heart felt so tight, small, despite being in contact, with news all the time, the expectation and that he will arrive well”.
The tennis player has kept in touch with his family in Brazil over the last few days. Until he arrives, Natália prefers not to follow the news about the war. The couple have a daughter aged 1 year and 8 months and are looking forward to their reunion.
War in Israel and Palestine
According to authorities, the Hamas attack and the Israeli reaction have left more than 1,200 people dead since the start of the conflict. Israel has gathered more than 100,000 reserve troops near the Gaza Strip, which is a Palestinian territory. The region’s population is without electricity, fuel and food.
In an official note, the Ministry of Sports said that it also informed the Brazilian embassy in Israel about the need to provide assistance to the three athletes. According to the text, minister André Fufuca (PP-MA) “requested the embassy’s full commitment to providing adequate security for the three wheelchair tennis players: Daniel Rodrigues, Leandro Pena and Ymanitu Silva, as well as support for the return of these athletes to the Brazil”.
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