Emiel Schippers (affiliated with Sport VGT Mechelen and the LTA - Maaseik) from Ophoven is the youngest athlete in our Belgian delegation and is a promising 17-year-old tennis player.
He came to our attention through a newspaper article in 2023, which reported that he had become Limburg and Flemish Champion in the under-15s category for able-bodied players. This is quite an achievement when you consider that he has been severely hard of hearing since childhood. Emiel receives expert guidance from the LTA (Limburg Tennis Academy) in Maaseik, a top-level sports environment where, under the guidance of trainer Luc Clauwers, he is making great progress in his young tennis career.
He took his first steps on the international stage in 2024 at the European Tennis Championships (Villach, Austria), where he won two bronze medals in the U18 category (singles and doubles). At this European Championship, as a promising 16-year-old, he caused quite a stir among the seniors by keeping the more experienced players at bay, reaching the semi-finals in the consolation round.
Given his young age, it will be a tremendous experience for Emiel to be selected and supported for the upcoming Deaflympics in Tokyo.
All his matches will take place in central Tokyo, at the Ariake Tennis Park Stadium.
His first match will take place on Sunday 16 November, in which he will face... (the draw has yet to take place!).
Depending on his result in the first match, he will know whether he can advance to the next round!
He will be accompanied on site by his trainer Luc Clauwers.
Keep your fingers crossed for our youngest debutant at these Deaflympics!
The top favourites in this discipline are the following tennis players:
- Jaroslav Smedek (CZE)
- Gabor Mathe (HUN)
- Marino Kegl (SLO)
- Olivier Grave (FRA)
- Prithvi Sekhar (IND)
- Mario Kargl (AUT)
- Marco Caretta (ITA)
- Duckhee Lee (KOR)
We are already keeping our fingers crossed for a favourable draw.
Program (depending on results)
- Zondag 16/11 vanaf 09:30 : voorronde
- Dinsdag 18/11 vanaf 09:30 : voorronde
- Thursday 20/11 vanaf 09:30 : voorronde
- Vrijdag 21/11 vanaf 10:00 : 1/4e finales
- Zondag 23/11 vanaf 10:00 : 1/2e finales
- Dinsdag 25/11 vanaf 10:00: Finale
