SPOKANE, Wash. — Raphael Botsyo isn’t fazed by competition.
He’s been overcoming obstacles his whole life.
“I’ve lived with a disability for almost 38 years now,” Botsyo said.
Raphael developed Polio at four years old, causing the bottom half of his body to be paralyzed.
In his native country of Ghana, those with disabilities are seen as cursed and are sometimes killed.
“People think you are not somebody that we need to recognize in this family,” Botsyo said.
When Raphael was teenager he and his family moved to another region in Ghana.
That’s where he found the Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled, an organization that provides opportunities for people with disabilities.
Botsyo was introduced to the world of adaptive sports.
“I was laughing,” Botsyo said. “I said no, you need your legs to do sports. If you don’t have your legs how can you practice any sports?”
That first sport was basketball.
“In a relationship some would say my first love,” Botsyo said.
But the love of the game comes second to the love for his country.
In 2008, he competed in his first Bloomsday in hopes to cross the finish line and keep those with disabilities off the sidelines.
“I use the sports as a bigger picture for being a voice for the voiceless up there in Ghana,” Botsyo said.
For Botsyo, an increase in numbers is a race against time to decrease the stigma.
“So if you are not lucky enough to have one or two people in the family who loves you for who you are, you suicide yourself or be locked up or you don’t get any opportunity,” Botsyo said.
Botsyo is a three-time Paralympian but is playing in Hoopfest for the first time.
It’s a new challenge with the same message.
“A lot of people back home see me as their voice because I got the opportunity to speak on their behalf,” Botsyo said. “I fight for things that they deserve.”
Botsyo helped create Go Get Dem Wheelchair Racing Club, to assists disabled persons by providing opportunities through sports.
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