Can we play basketball when we are one-armed? The answer is yes. Having had his left arm amputated at the age of six, Hansel Emmanuel is preparing to discover the NCAA, the American university championship, after having caused a sensation in high school. Back to the atypical career of this Dominican kid who dreams of the NBA.
The young Hansel Emmanuel is raised in the poor neighborhood of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic by his mother and father Hansel Salvador Donatoa professional basketball player. Baseball fan, 6-year-old Hansel, sees his life change when a wall falls on him. He remains stuck for more than two hours under the rubble and had to have his left arm amputated.
At first it was very difficult because I was losing my balance and when I started running I was not running straight.
A torture for this child who then had to learn to live again. “I couldn’t even tie my shoelaces or drink a glass of water“, explained the Dominican to ESPN, an American sports television channel.
Now one-armed, Hansel puts baseball aside to devote himself to basketball. “At the beginning it was very difficult because I lost my balance and when I started running, I didn’t run straight. But around 14, I realized that I was pretty good at basketball.“. And even very good. Very impressive athletically, the teenager martyrs his opponents with crosses and dunks on the streetball courts. Videos of his exploits will then go around social networks and in 2021, Hansel receives a scholarship and arrives in Florida, at Life Christian Academy. He is a former teammate of his father, Moses Michaelcoach of the team, who will convince him to put down his suitcases in the United States.
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