Hansel Emmanuel, a native of the Dominican Republic, who plays high school basketball for Life Christian Academy in Kissimmee, Florida, lost his arm in a tragic accident at the age of six.
Now 16, the accident has clearly not slowed down his love of basketball. After first making waves earlier this year, Emmanuel recently went viral again with an impressive highlight reel playing AAU ball.
According to Yahoo Sports, he says he remembers the accident as “a life lesson that God exists” and has given him the power to exceed various challenges he faces in life.
His Instagram account also features numerous improbable highlights, sometimes accompanied by words of inspiration or encouragement.
“The more difficult the obtaining, the easier the path will be.”
Competing against some very good college prospects, Emmanuel often looks like the best player out on the floor. Given that he is at a severe disadvantage both on offense and defense, that’s quite a remarkable accomplishment.
Here are more highlights from his first AAU tourney a few weeks ago:
Here is an interview with Hansel from last month, and he explains he’s only been in the United States since February. His injury at 6 years old was suffered when a wall fell on his arm, trapping him for about 2 hours and by the time they got to the hospital it was too late, it needed to be amputated.