Paul Arif Karabardak (born 3 October 1985) is a Welsh para table tennis player who has competed in three Summer Paralympics.[1]
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| Nickname | PK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Welsh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 October 1985 Swansea, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Country |  Great Britain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Para table tennis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability | Brain haemorrhage | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | C6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Cardiff TTC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editKarabardak was a keen footballer when he was a child but he suffered from a massive stroke aged 10, he played table tennis after his stroke in a local youth club.[2]
Sporting career
editAged 16 in 2001, Karabardak was chosen to participate in the GB Para Table Tennis Team in Frankfurt for the European Championships. He won his first national medal along with David Hope, a bronze in the teams' event. He continued to win two silver medals and two bronze medals in the team events. In 2017, in Lasko, Slovenia, Karabardak won his first ever European gold medal with David Wetherill and Martin Perry after defeating Croatia in the final.[3]
2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, China were Karabardak's first Paralympic Games. He lost in the group stage of the tournament after losing to two matches and winning one. In the 2012 Summer Paralympics, he was second in his group by winning against Kim Young Sung and losing to bronze medalist Mykhaylo Popov. At his third games in Rio de Janeiro, he was bottom of his group and didn't advance to the final rounds.
References
edit- ^ "IPTTC Profile - Paul Karabardak". International Para Table Tennis Federation. 15 April 2019.
- ^ "Paul Karabardak - British Para Table Tennis Squad". British Para Table Tennis. 15 April 2019.
- ^ "GB trio are pure gold!". Table Tennis England. 4 October 2017.