Lin Ma

How Fate Started Lin Ma’s Journey To Paralympic Great 

Just keep persisting.  

When Lin Ma is struggling he remembers those very words.  

“During training, when there’s no improvements and when competition gets really hard, I think about giving up. But in the end, I just keep persisting,” he said.  

The story of Lin, a naturalised Australian and one of the greats of Para-table tennis, is inspiring and uplifting.  

A former Chinese competitor, Lin lost his right arm after a terrible accident involving a bear at a zoo near his home in provincial China in the mid-1990s.  

“When I was a kid, around four or five I went with some friends to the zoo,” he said. 

“I’ve always loved animals and at the time there was a bear that I tried to pat and it attacked me.” 

His severe injuries changed the course of his life. 

“When I was a child my goal was to win a gold medal in the Paralympics,” Lin said.  

“I improved dramatically and within a year I started playing in competitions.  

“In the end I joined the national team and it took me to international competitions, world championships and then the Paralympics.” 

Lin has won seven Paralympic medals, including two silver medals for Australia at Tokyo 2020, in four Paralympic Games. He’s also won five world titles and eleven Asian titles in his sport – and he’s not finished yet. 

“Maybe winning does become more difficult but as long as I’m able to play I want to keep playing at my highest level.”