Hansel Emmanuel Donato Dominguez/Photo courtesy of Sports Illustrated
Hansel Emmanuel Donato Dominguez is an excellent basketball player. Tennessee State University, an HBCU, has offered him his first Division I scholarship to play for their team. What makes this more special is that the young man is an amputee.
According to Sports Illustrated, Donato Dominguez, 17, is known for having excellent offensive skills on the basketball court. However, none of the Division I schools had offered him a spot on their roster.
That changed on Thursday when the HBCU made the young player his first offer.
“Blessed to receive my first D1 offer from Tennessee State University,” Donato Dominguez announced to his 606,000-plus Instagram followers. “Thank you for believing in my talents.”
More impressive than Donato Dominguez’s basketball talent is that he has developed his skills as an amputee.
At the age of six, Donato Dominguez was in an accident where a wall collapsed and trapped him under debris for two hours. In the aftermath, he lost his left arm. At the time, he and his family were living in their native Dominican Republic.
His father, Hansel Salvador Donato, saved him, but the accident also took a toll on him.
“My life fell apart when Hansel’s accident happened. I was the one with him, and when they had to amputate his arm, I felt like it was all over,” he said.
However, Donato Dominguez’s faith in God is what made him realize that being an amputee was really a blessing. He took up basketball to follow in his father’s footsteps, who played professionally in the Dominican Republic and never looked back.
Donato Dominguez recently received a scholarship to Life Christian Academy to play prep ball after moving to the United States with his family. Though he has experienced hurdles, such as limited English proficiency, he has navigated them quite well.
Hansel Emmanuel Donato Dominguez stands 6 feet 5 inches, yet his determination, talent and faith rise much higher. He plans to visit TSU after the 2021-2022 season ends.