«I work in a group where there are people who are much better than me», he smiles Elisabetta Mijno. He moves from one ward to another at the CTO (Orthopedic Trauma Center) in Turin, between operating rooms and gestures that require absolute precision, in this tower overlooking the Po where every movement speaks of concentration and method. For her, who in addition to being a doctor is a sports woman, there is a decisive prerequisite: the result is almost always collective.
«I was born in Moncalieri, I attended scientific high school in Giaveno, then I graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at San Luigi di Orbassano». Before that path worth 110 cum laudehe says, he had tried another path. Two years of Biotechnology, at the large center in Piazza Nizza in Turin. «That’s where I discovered this world. I liked it, it fascinated me with the skills it requires.” Then the change of direction, the specialization in Parma and the return to Turin, to operate in a wheelchair, while sitting. He chose hand surgery because of a certain predisposition to fix things. And then because for his disability “hands are fundamental”.
Paraplegic since the age of five after a car accident, Elisabetta Mijno is one of the stars of the Italian national archery team. For those who do their work in the hospital, he explains, disability weighs especially at the beginning. «It’s one thing for a doctor with experience to whom something happens. For those entering the profession, however, there is everything to learn.” This is also why she never thought she could do it alone. «I am convinced that when someone wants to achieve goals they must get help».
Sport appeared early in his life. “My parents and my brothers always involved me in their activities: I played but without thinking that there should be a different team for those like me who had a disability.” Here’s why «I often don’t set limits for myself». She started archery as a child, following the spot-on advice of a family friend. Over time, that choice has become discipline, identity, career. Sacrifice. «What would remain empty spaces in my day are filled by training. It means a lot, it’s my moment, which gives me the chance to detach, which has given and taught me a lot. For better or for worse.”
She arrived at the CTO in 2017, and since 2021 she has been permanently part of the team of the most important hospital in the area dedicated to trauma. At the same time, his sporting profile has also grown. «I joined the national archery team in 2007. It was a crescendo, I began to establish myself on the national field, to build my history as an athlete». Silver in London 2012, bronze in Rio 2016, silver in Tokyo in 2020, gold in Paris in 2024. And in 2022 Mijno entered the national team of able-bodied athletes, taking home the Italian championship. After her last Olympic triumph, it was her hospital colleagues who reminded her how much that path is shared: they painted her locker the same color as the medal. The arch, Elisabetta reasons, is democratic, eliminates differences, does not allow shortcuts. “It’s an equal sport.” Browse his palmarès: five medals, two world records. Key figures return on his journey. «I think of my Orthopedics teacher, Professor Massè». And then the family, decisive even if “less aware, theirs has always been an emotional support”, and the colleagues met along the way. The agenda is strict: wake up at 6, work at 7, the operating room at 8. Days that require continuous concentration and resistance, both physical and mental.
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On the role of doctorson the controversies surrounding access to a very delicate profession, the gaze is lucid and critical. “We have a huge responsibility, the dignity of our image has unfortunately been ruined.” In the tumultuous years of digital and artificial intelligence, the relationship with patients has also changed. «We struggle – he admits – because before we were trusted, now we have to earn this credibility and it’s not that simple. But I hope that things change.”
Sport, just a few days away from his fortieth birthdayremains central. «It’s passion, something that gives me great emotions». The territory remains in the background, concrete. Turin, its structures, its contradictions. «But we can’t complain. There are people who experience enormous discomfort. Of course, the facilities should be more accessible.”
Il sporting futurehe explains, is suspended today. “At this specific moment I am in a sort of mental pause.” A conscious choice. “I decided not to make any kind of decision, to live this dimension day by day.” Los Angeles would be the sixth Olympics. “Nothing would be impossible.” But there is one condition. “I will only do it if it brings me joy.”
