The smile of a young athlete that has great chances of competing at the Rio 2016™ Paralympic Games has touched Juliana Cortês de Melo. She is author of one of the winning photos of “My Paralympic picture” Cultural Contest. The swimmer Maria Dayanne da Silva has just climbed her first podium at the Guadalajara Parapan-American Games, Mexico. She sees her career take off, making her friend and photographer proud.

Student at the Rio Grande do Norte Federal University television and radio school, Juliana produces a television programme about Paralympic sports at her hometown, the city of Natal. She has taken advantage of an interview with Dayanne – at the club where the athlete trains –to take the winning photo.

“I love to take photos and Dayanne deserves the tribute. She trains here at our hometown, together with Clodoaldo Silva (Brazilian Paralympic Swimming athlete who has won many medals) and other athletes, and I considered it a beautiful photo because of its meaning”, says Juliana.

Maria Dayanne is 19 years old. With upper limb malformation, she started training in 2005 and competing the following year. She has won gold and bronze medals at the Colombia Youth Parapan-American Games (2009), gold and bronze at the Rio de Janeiro International Paralympic Meeting (2010) and bronze at the Sheffield Swimming Championship in UK (2011). On November this year, she won the bronze in the S6 50m butterfly stroke at the Guadalajara Parapan-American Games, helping Brazil to dominate the medal table.

About the photo

Nothing is impossible in the Paralympic Movement. The happiness of Dayanne Silva!

Juliana Cortês de Melo