Special Olympics Uganda table tennis player Cleopatra Rhabaha Bulage who won a silver at the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin recently is determined to continue excelling in the sport.

The 15-year old, Hill Preparatory School Naguru, Primary 7 pupil who can also swim besides playing other sports like hockey, cricket and tennis settled for silver at the games after she fell to Special Olympics (SO) China’s Liu Linglin in the final of the U17-D3 category. 

This was the first medal from table tennis for Bulage who has a hearing defect, and only began the sport last year.

She had before the loss in the table tennis final picked wins over SO Kyrgyz Republic’s Zaida Bazarbekova and SO Mongolia’s Namuuntsetseg Bayarsaikhan, winning 3-0 against each before she fell to Liu.

“I felt excited but then thought; I didn’t do enough to win the gold but I thank God that I managed to get the silver,” Bulage said.

She said a change in bats from the plastic one that she travelled with to a wooden and heavier one led to her loss to the Chinese, although she admits her opponent had a better forward serve.

“I wish to continue playing and winning for Uganda and I will soon join a table tennis club to continue sharpening my game,” Bulage said.

She credits coaches Nuhu Munuulo and Bashir Ssekandi for her steady rise in the sport and is keen on improving her swimming too.

“My favourite stroke is freestyle and I won a 25m freestyle gold in last year’s Special Olympics National Games in Gulu, so I want to continue improving and upgrading to the 50m distance,” Bulage who started swimming while in P.4 said.

Her favourite swimmer and role model is Special Olympics World Games double gold medallist, Uganda’s Larry Feni “who swims like a fish in the water”.

She trains every evening after class and looks forward to more opportunities with Team Uganda.