Born in Poland, she developed cancer at the age of 7, which took 4 years to cure. She immigrated to Canada when she was 12. Today, Natalia Lanucha, from Pincourt, speaks perfect French, holds two bachelor's degrees, is starting a master's degree in psycho-education and is Canada's top wheelchair tennis athlete. What an inspiring career! 

How to describe Natalia: a woman-orchestra, a woman of heart, a passionate and determined athlete. 

Natalia comments on her journey: "The last athlete on the national team from Quebec was in 2017. I'm currently the only Quebec athlete on the Quebec and Canadian wheelchair tennis teams. My goals are to participate in the Para PanAm in Chile in 2023 and the Paralympic Games in Paris in 2024.

"To achieve these goals, I must participate in a minimum of 12 international events by November 2023.

"The biggest obstacles to achieving these goals are the costs associated with international travel, the training needed to continue to develop myself, the equipment required to play and, of course, the registration fees for these tennis competitions."

The Parapan American Games will serve as regional qualifiers for Paris 2024, taking place in Chile in November 2023, and Natalia is keen to take part.

Natalia confides with a smile, in fact she always smiles: "I think I was born wanting to do sport, from my first breath". She tells this anecdote about her constant smile: "My mother often says to me: Natalia, I don't recognize you when you play, you look so serious".

The athlete thinks only of challenges: "When I was ill, the stories of others who were going through similar misfortunes inspired me a lot, even if sometimes it was sad. I also dreamed of becoming an inspiration to others."

Starting today, Natalia takes part in a competition in Toronto, to complete her journey of international competitions. Her next ITF tournament will take place from October 7 to 10 in New Brunswick, and the next Canadian championships will be held in Bedford, Nova Scotia, on October 12.

She trains with Étienne Bergeron around 3 times a week at the Centre Multisports in Vaudreuil-Dorion, and by herself for around 2 hours a day. She is classified by the ITF (International Tennis Federation) in the Elite category.

Her life: a story worthy of a film

Natalia's life story fits the perfect scenario for a movie, where the heroine endures multiple adversities and emerges stronger.

Born in Poland, her mother dreamed of settling in Canada, and she has two brothers, one of whom is a twin. At the same time as her mother obtained her visa, she developed a rare bone cancer (Ewing's sarcoma). Her two brothers took advantage of the visa to travel to Canada to live witht their grandparents. Natalia and her mother decided to stay in Poland to treat Natalia's cancer.

After 4 years of treatment and surgery, which left her with a severely disabled leg, Natalia and her mother joined the rest of the family in Canada. To this day, the Pincourt athlete is followed by several oncologists: a general oncologist, another for her leg and a third specialized in the heart, as symptoms may return.

A woman of projects

Nothing stops her in her projects. She is passionate about helping the elderly in CHSLDs. She has been a volunteer at CHSLD Laurent-Bergevin for several years. "I love helping people, and cases of severe dementia attract me more than anything else; these are people with great needs.

"It's hard for loved ones to see people change, and I want to be there for them too," she adds. She is certain that it is to them that she wants to dedicate her career in specialized care. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology, another in psychoeducation and starts her master's in psychoeducation this fall.

Paris 2024

Natalia has just launched a fundraising campaign via the GoFundMe platform to make her Paralympic Games dream come true.

You can still take part in Natalia's socio-financing campaign at gofundme.com.

Also, the Centre Multisports André-Chagnon, where she trains with her coach, Étienne Bergeron, is supporting her journey and announcing a fundraising weekend on September 23 and 24 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m..

Participants can reserve a court for $100/hour or cardio tennis for $30/hour. Natalia will also be offering exhibition matches on these days.

For more information or to register for a workshop: centremultisports.org.

If you feel you want to help an exceptional person realize dreams that are worthwhile, choose Natalia - you won't regret it.

At the end of the meeting, Natalia thanked her coach Étienne Bergeron, who helps her organize everything, as well as the volunteers and Centre Multisports André-Chagnon who support her in her endeavors.