The story of Igor Dutra Ferreira, 26 — the first Brazilian athlete to officially compete at the World Blind Tennis Championships.
Born with Lowe Syndrome, Igor lost his vision completely in 2018 after five unsuccessful cornea transplant attempts. But tennis runs in his blood — it was never just a hobby for Igor, it was a way of life and also a way to be close to his family. His mother and most of his relatives are all tennis players, and since childhood, his life was on a tennis court.
After losing his sight, his family discovered Blind Tennis through some online searches. But being a sport born in Japan and with most of its information in English, language and distance would be the biggest barriers to learning more about the sport and reaching out to its community. But Igor started practicing it anyway. His family found a way to buy a few official balls and, as a viable alternative, one of his uncles found a way to remove the bells from the official balls and insert them into new similar ones that could be bought in Brazil.
Igor found his way back into tennis and it didn’t take long for him to develop incredible skills, quickly adapting to training alone — hitting the ball against the wall like regular tennis players do.
Six years later, Igor met a new friend — a communications specialist — who helped him contact the International Blind Tennis Association (IBTA). They researched and confirmed that no one else was actually practicing the sport in Brazil, revealing that Igor was the country’s true pioneer — making history without even realizing it. They then began planning to formalize Igor’s career as an athlete and seek support to structure his training and start competing in IBTA events representing Brazil.
In 2025, with the support of a community of family and friends, Igor traveled to Bologna, Italy, and became the first Brazilian to officially compete in an IBTA-sanctioned Blind Tennis tournament.
By July 2026, with the help of a network of friends, they managed to get in touch with the CBT (Brazilian Tennis Federation) and the Brazilian Paralympic Committee, who appointed their support for his career and for the development and growth of the sport in Brazil moving forward.
The Next Step: IBTA World Blind Tennis Championships in Vilnius, Lithuania (August 23–29, 2026) — where Igor will take Brazil to participate for the first time in a World Championships, growing the sport’s community and presence around the world.
One athlete’s determination. A community that believed. Brazil is now in the game.
Follow Igor’s journey: @igor_blindtennisbrasil · @igordutraferreira blindtennis.com.br
Tennis Square — São Paulo, Brazil