Breakwell out to inspire on courts of Roland Garros

When Abbie Breakwell took up wheelchair tennis, she saw competing in the Paralympic Games as an impossibility.

Less than a decade on and the 21-year-old will represent ParalympicsGB in the singles and doubles events at Paris 2024 with a determination to inspire others to follow her example.

"If you had told little 13-year-old me when I first started that you would be going to the Paralympics, I'd have said, 'You are lying because I can't even catch a ball, let along hit a tennis ball,'" Breakwell told BBC East Midlands Today.

"It would be huge for me to be able to get young people to go, 'Yes, I have a disability but if she can get to the Paralympics why can't I?'

"Sport can change your life and even if it gets one person to change their life for the better, then it's definitely worth it."

Breakwell, who is ranked 46 in the world and second in Britain, will team up with experienced world number 15, Lucy Shuker, who claimed Paralympic silver at the the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Shuker, a three-time doubles medallist, will be competing in her fifth Paralympic Games at the age of 44.

For Derbyshire's Breakwell, who trains at Loughborough University, her appearance on the famous courts of Roland Garros which usually host the French Open will also be a first.

"It still feels a bit like imposter syndrome because it has been something I have been working towards for so long," she said.

"This is my very first Paralympics and my focus when I'm there is to soak up every single bit of it and enjoy it as it is a new experience.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm still as competitive as always and I will want to push myself to try win as many matches as possible but I want to enjoy every moment."