Lee Duck-Hee is an 18-year-old tennis player in Korea who has gone up the tennis ladder and is now 143rd in the world.

If I were to summarize his skills, I would say he’s an awesome tennis player. But wait, he’s much more awesome than that, because he is also deaf.

In tennis, reaction time is critical, as you have mere fractions of a second to determine your countermove. Hearing the ball is crucial because it tells you how the ball is going to end up in your court: as a spin, flat or otherwise. No other deaf player has reached this level in sports.

Sometimes a handicap can be overcome if one has a strong desire to do so.

Congratulations, Lee Duck-Hee, we will all be hearing a lot about you in the years to come.