SHAH ALAM, March 1 — Poland’s Natalia Partyka has never looked at herself as a disabled athlete despite being born without a right forearm and hand.

Instead, she chooses to use it as motivation to inspire others to pursue their dreams.

“I don’t want to single out any competitors as they are all equally strong, they have proven that in previous matches. I tell fellow athletes to never give up, if you have a dream you have to make it happen no matter what the cost,” said Partyka, who is currently competing at the World Team Table Tennis Championships.

The 26-year-old, who uses the crook of her right elbow to serve has not had the best of outings so far, winning only one of her games.

Yesterday, despite battling valiantly, Partyka lost in both her matches against Holland, first going down 14-12, 9-11, 12-14, 8-11 to Li Jiao, before she was tamed 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 10-12 by Li Jie.

“I am disappointed because I was so close to winning, it was a gruelling four hours but I played well,” she said.

The Pole hopes her Olympic dream this year in Rio de Janeiro will not be affected by her performance so far.

“I definitely qualify for the Paralympic Games, but I still have to fight my way into the Olympic qualifiers after all my losses in this championship,” she said.

The three-time Paralympic champion is desperate to prove herself on the biggest stage and wants nothing more than to vie for a podium finish at the Olympics in Rio.

Partyka is not just doing this for her self-satisfaction, she desperately wants to make an impact to raise the profile of the sport back home.

“The better I play, the more table tennis will be known back home. It is important to work with children as they are the next generation of paddlers. It will be difficult pulling them away from TV and computer screens but we have to somehow.”

Partyka, who started playing the game at seven, wants to see the younger generation more involved in the sport she so loves.

 ”I have always desired to see people use what they have to the fullest. There is no reason to look down upon yourself because you will never go anywhere,” said Partyka, who will be gearing up to make another big impression against Singapore today.