The Fake Paralympians: 1. Gold
Team captain Ray is genuinely disabled - and going to Sydney is beyond his wildest dreams
The Documentary Podcast · BBC World Service
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Show Notes
Ex-Paralympic swimmer Dan Pepper investigates the cheats who won gold and left a devastating legacy for learning disability sport.
Ray Torres used to get beaten up every day at school. He stood out because he had a learning disability. But when his dad gave him a basketball, he found an escape and a kind of friend that didn’t hit him or call him names. He took the ball everywhere - even using it as a pillow.
When Spain started an intellectual disability basketball team, Ray was picked as one of the best players in the country and within a few years he was made captain. And when he found out the team had qualified to take part in the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, it was beyond his wildest dreams…