
Married couple celebrate a Tokyo victory each and a shared reunion after three months apart
CHIBA (OIS) – There was plenty to celebrate for Fabricio DA SILVA PINTO (BRA) and Bethany ZUMMO (USA) as they began their respective sitting volleyball campaigns on Saturday.
On court, the defensive players helped their teams to wins, while off it they have been enjoying a romantic reunion having not seen other since they got married in Brazil three months ago.
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The pair had been apart until ZUMMO landed in Tokyo on Friday night after her arrival was delayed by a Covid exposure, but she shook off the jet-lag during a comfortable 3-0 victory for United States against Rwanda.
“We’ve got a little running joke about how for me it’s like, ‘Practice? What? I don’t need to practice, I’m just here to play’,” ZUMMO said.
Later in the day, her husband DA SILVA PINTO was part of the Brazil team that beat China 3-1, keeping the Rio bronze medallists on track for another podium finish.
“I was really nervous in the beginning – the first match, the first ball, the first game of the Paralympic Games we’ve been waiting for for five years,” DA SILVA PINTO said.
“But we are the second ranked (team), so we just let our game talk for itself.”
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DA SILVA PINTO said he and ZUMMO will not be watching each others’ matches live as they focus on their own teams’ bid for glory.
And after that they will focus on the future, together at last.
“It was a really crazy thing to do to get married,” he said. “But we’re a crazy couple.
“We have no idea where we’ll live. We’re just thinking about Tokyo right now.”