Arjola Dedaj (born 26 November 1981 in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

) is a blind Italian Paralympic athlete who competes in

sprinting Sprinting is running over a short distance at the top-most speed of the body in a limited period of time. It is used in many sports that incorporate running, typically as a way of quickly reaching a target or goal, or avoiding or catching an op ...

and

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

events in international level events.

Personal life

Dedaj was born in Albania, she was discriminated by her visual impairment which she has had since the age of three years old because there were no schools in Albania that could provide her an education. She immigrated to Italy in a

rubber dinghy An inflatable boat is a lightweight boat constructed with its sides and bow made of flexible tubes containing pressurised gas. For smaller boats, the floor and hull is often flexible, while for boats longer than , the floor typically consist ...

in 1998 along with her father and brother to join her mother who was in Milan. She and her partner Emanuele Di Marino, who is her training partner and also participates in Paralympic track and field events are referred to as ''"La coppia dei sogni"'' (''"the dream couple"'' in Italian).

References

External links

* 1981 births Living people Sportspeople from Tirana Athletes from Milan Albanian emigrants to Italy Paralympic athletes for Italy Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics {{DEFAULTSORT:Dedaj, Arjola Naturalised citizens of Italy Medalists at the World Para Athletics European Championships