- Homepage
- Athletes
- Athlete Profiles
- 2008
- Sidney Fredeling
Sidney Fredeling
A Lesson in Perseverance
Sidney Fredeling will take part in the Défi sportif for the second year. His determination and
perseverance earned him the 2008 National Bank Champion title for a second year in a row. How
did the basketball player react to the announcement? I felt great joy and pride
, he told us,
and it has also been a source of additional motivation.
When he was one year old, Sydney caught meningitis. Complication ensued and deafness followed.
Of course, that has been an extremely trying ordeal for his parents. Sydney was a very precocious
child
, said his mother. As a matter of fact, at ten months of age he was already walking
and could say some words like mommy and daddy. Unfortunately, this illness hit and, when he came
home from the hospital, he was not the same.
Nevertheless, Sydney learned to live with his handicap and it did not keep him from excelling in his
sport. Aside from playing with hearing impaired people, he also competes in a regular league. Being
deaf, I don’t hear the coach’s instructions. So, I look around a lot and use my brain
, reported his
mother who acted as interpreter during the interview.
The young athlete, about to turn 16 this spring, became hooked on basketball as he watched the sport
on television. When I saw the NBA players on TV, I loved the game right away. That sport fascinated
me
, he explained. At the beginning, I had a lot of difficulty understanding the rules of the game
and avoiding penalties. That being said, it is much better now.
The young man is aiming for no less than a professional career in basketball. He also hopes to encourage athletes who live with a hearing impairment to not give up, and to overcome the barriers brought on by this handicap. This example of perseverance truly is an inspiration for all.
Access technical record [in French]
