"Monday Missions entry" Meet Ismail - The Butterfly

6-year-old Ismail was born with no arms but with a big heart. This little boy also suffers from some deformities in both of his legs but that doesn't stop him from doing what he loves most - swimming and competing.

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Ismail is a brave-heart. While he was still a baby, he fell into the family swimming pool but it was fate that decided that he will become a swimmer. He swims for the swimming club SPID, the only swimming club for children with disabilities in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina whose members are not required to pay a membership fee.

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Ismail trains three times per week and has won several gold medals. In 2017 he won the gold medal at the 9th Regional Swimming Tournament in Zagreb, Croatia.

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One year later he won gold at Belgrade Open, a regional competition for people with disabilities. Little Ismail has a cute nickname. He is called The Butterfly.

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A proud winner showing his gold medal

The boy's parents told local media that Ismail is very independent. Despite his disability, he does many things by himself and doesn't ask for help. He eats on his own using his feet. He loves to play video games on his PC with his friends. He learned how to crawl and how to walk all on his own.

The news about Ismail, the little boy with no arms who is winning gold medals went viral. Famous actor Ashton Kutcher shared a video of Ismail on his Facebook profile.

The Butterfly has won several personal awards.
The city of Sarajevo honored him with the Sarajevo Snowflake award which is awarded for remarkable success in a sporting competition.
He was also named the most promising athlete of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2017 by the Bosnian Sports Federation for People with Disabilities.

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I have read many beautiful stories about Ismail but one that particularly struck me is a story that his father shared for a local web portal.

Ismail and his family were enjoying a sunny day in a small cafe. A little boy approached their table wanting to play with Ismail. He handed him a toy car but soon realized that Ismail had no arms. When he noticed that his new friend was taking off his shoes to reach for the toy he promptly suggested: "Let's play hide and seek". Happy that he met a new friend, Ismail jumped up and went to play with the boy.

Ismail is a remarkable little boy who can teach us a lot. Giving up was never an option for him and he worked hard until his dreams became a reality.

Way to go Ismail, way to go!

Read more about Ismail here