Beatrice Vio

Italian wheelchair fencer

Beatrice Maria Adelaide Marzia Vio Grandis (born 4 March 1997), better known as Bebe Vio, is an Italian wheelchair foil fencer. She won two gold, a silver and three bronze medals at the Paralympic Games.[1][2]

Beatrice Vio
Image of Vio smiling; she has short, blond hair
Bebe Vio in 2018
Personal information
Birth nameBeatrice Maria Adelaide Marzia Vio
Full nameBeatrice Maria Adelaide Marzia Vio Grandis
Nickname(s)Bebe Vio
Born (1997-03-04) 4 March 1997 (age 27)
Venice, Italy
Websitebebevio.com
Sport
CountryItaly
SportFoil fencing
ClubScherma Mogliano
Coached byFederica Berton, Alice Esposito
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Paralympic Games 2 1 3
World Championships 3 0 0
European Championships 4 1 0
Total 9 2 3
Summer Paralympics
Gold medal – first place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Foil B
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Foil B
Silver medal – second place 2020 Tokyo Team foil
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team foil
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris Foil B
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris Team foil

Early life

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Beatrice Vio was born in Venice, Italy, on 4 March 1997. She grew up in Mogliano Veneto. At 5, she started fencing.

In 2008, when she was 11 years old, she got meningitis, a bad infection. She stayed in the hospital for more than a hundred days. To save her live, the doctors cut her forearms and her legs at the knee.[1]

As soon as she got out of the hospital, she started wheelchair fencing.

Career

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Vio Grandis's coaches are Federica Berton and Alice Esposito. She is in the Paralympic category B.[1]

When she was 19, Vio went to the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro. On 14 September, she beat Zhou Jingjing [en] in the final and won the gold medal in the wheelchair fencing foil individual event.[3]

In 2021, Vio went to the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo. On 28 August, she beat Zhou Jingjing again and she won her second gold medal in the wheelchair fencing foil individual event.[4]

Vio, with the double-surname Vio Grandis (Grandis is her mother's surname), went to the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris now. She won two bronze medals.

  • Mi hanno regalato un sogno, English translation: They gifted me a dream (2015, Rizzoli Libri [en], Milano; ISBN 978-88-586-7878-7)
  • Se sembra impossibile allora si può fare, English translation: If it seems impossible then it can be done (2017, Rizzoli Libri, Milano; ISBN 978-88-17-09713-0)

Filmography

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References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Beatrice Vio". International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  2. "Vio, Bebe". Treccani (in Italian). Archived from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  3. "Victory for Vio in wheelchair fencing foil event". International Paralympic Committee. 14 September 2016. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  4. "Bebe Vio makes history with second Paralympic gold medal in wheelchair fencing". International Paralympic Committee (in English and Spanish). 28 August 2021. Archived from the original on 4 March 2024. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  5. Horst, Carole (25 August 2020). "Netflix's 'Rising Phoenix' Celebrates Top Paralympic Athletes". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 21 July 2024.

Other websites

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