Bayrak Taşıyanlar

This is movie grade.

“Coach, am I dreaming?” I'd ask.

The days I walked through the snow, the days I got soaked.

He took pills.

He’s on his way to becoming a champion!

Umut Ünlü is the gold medalist.

He became the first and only athlete to win two gold medals

at the Paralympic Games and made history.

My life changed that month.

I want to make a difference in people’s lives.

Sometimes I can’t cope with what I’m going through.

Umut was in a very bad state.

He achieved a historic first.

Determined, ambitious, and emotional.

My dad would video call me while he was working at a construction.

Ever since humans can remember, they have sought the truth in nature.

In the unstoppable flow of water,

the unshakable power of the earth,

the boundlessness of the air, and the transformative passion of fire.

Centuries have passed; the world has changed.

Humanity’s will to reach its essence has never changed.

Now, we’re following the traces of that ancient essence on the journey

of four flag bearers who are shattering their own limits.

We bear witness to the arduous struggle for existence of Umut Ünlü,

who, on the path to self-realization, faces the toughest challenges

with the patience, labor, and time that shape the earth itself.

Earth is not the element of balance, equality, or perfection,

but of harmony and unity.

Every life born from the earth is the result of harmony.

It comes alive as it is tilled, yields as it is cultivated, and is nourished,

sometimes by water, sometimes by fire, sometimes by air.

In this story, earth meets water.

It captures harmony in water and gains meaning by merging with it.

The fruit of this harmony is Umut Ünlü.

I was born in Van.

I was born in a village, in a house

and my mother was 19 years old.

The idea of a 19-year-old woman having a child with a disability

seems incredibly difficult to me, even when I think about it now.

I even ask my mom “What were you thinking at that moment?”

I was so happy when I first held him in my arms.

I never saw him as disabled.

Because he was my little one. I was so happy then.

I chose the name Umut when he was born

and I never saw Umut as disabled.

Umut became a ray of light for us.

Even now, it still feels like something incredible to me.

My mom sometimes tells me about the pressure and bullying

she faced back then. It really breaks my heart.

Everything in the universe is imperfect.

Harmony comes not from perfection, but from harmony itself.

Every seed’s journey begins in the dark.

Those were very difficult times for us. We were struggling a lot.

When he was born, his hands and feet were fused together.

When he was three months old, we took him to the hospital.

He had surgery there.

Umut underwent many surgeries.

Umut’s fingers were webbed.

His thumb was a very thin finger.

The doctors said, “We have to separate that finger."

When his fingers got tangled up, they would turn purple.

And it hurt. He couldn’t sleep until morning. He would cry.

I didn’t understand why he was crying.

We spent that night awake until morning.

In the morning, they amputated that finger.

Umut was just a small thing. He wouldn't stop still.

His legs were in a cast up to here. He couldn’t stay in bed.

There were also Umut’s medical expenses and such.

And hospitals were far away.

We had to use public transportation.

We were constantly carrying him back and forth in our arms.

The surgery was over.

The doctors said, “There’s nothing more we can do.”

“Take him to a big city, either Ankara or Istanbul,” they said.

Of course, our move from Van to Istanbul was also for my treatment.

Since the treatments there were inadequate, we moved to Istanbul.

And when we arrived in Istanbul, I got treatment from better doctors.

In order for him to find himself, he needs a new outlet, a new world.

For Umut Ünlü, the struggle was also difficult.

Moreover, his life had begun with various disadvantages.

From the moment he was born, Umut was a will waiting to sprout

and flourish within a body limited by a muscle disease.

He moved away from his hometown at a young age.

When he and his family moved from Van to Istanbul for his treatment,

he found a new path for himself and became “Umut” once again.

Was Umut at that time at peace with his life and his surroundings?

How was the world through the eyes of “Child Umut”?

Which emotions, anger, sadness, or excitement, were the most dominant?

When I was a child, I was actually very happy.

Back then, we hadn’t yet experienced the realities of life.

We always played with our friends.

We’d play until evening, then sleep.

In the morning, we’d go outside to play again.

Many times I felt disillusioned with life.

My friends would play soccer, and I’d watch.

Or if a game wasn’t suitable for my physical condition, I’d watch them.

I actually didn’t like that very much back then.

But every time I went to sleep I’d imagine that when I woke up,

I’d be a strong, healthy person.

I’ve come to realize that that isn’t going to happen.

And let’s just say that this realization really wore me out.

But I also love my childhood.

I’d like to go back to my childhood.

But with my current thoughts.

He was most influenced by his friends.

We didn’t have any problems within the family.

He couldn’t go everywhere with his friends.

He wanted to dress like them, but he couldn’t.

It was truly dark. I couldn’t see a thing.

I constantly had the same thoughts.

“What am I going to do like this?"

I was constantly envying other people. They can do this.

People wore shoes and pants, that alone was

actually very upsetting.

When there was a wedding, Umut wanted to dress up and go

like his friends, but he couldn’t.

That’s why a lot of things happened, it turned out badly.

They went to a place, they went to the park with his friends.

A dog chased them.

His friends ran away, but he stayed behind.

That’s why it was so bad.

Sometimes I can’t cope with the things I’ve been through.

We can’t get past some things.

People’s stares, people’s words.

I used to be the kind of person who got too caught up in these thoughts.

And once, I even attempted suicide.

When I think back on those days,

I realize I committed suicide because I didn’t know what else to do.

Because when there’s nothing you can do and no other options left,

you turn to that path.

I came home that day.

I was already home. I had gone to the grocery store.

When I got there, I took a look at Umut standing at the door.

I didn’t like the look of him at all.

So I went back inside.

I took a step, my foot landed on something.

I picked it up, it was an empty medicine bottle.

I thought. “Who took this medicine?”

I was really scared at that moment. I got angry at him.

I was angry. I said, “Why did you do something like that?”

“Get up,” I said, “I’ll take you to the hospital.”

I took him to the hospital, and I took the medicine box with me too.

I said, “My son did this; he took these pills.”

Of course, the doctors were very upset.

That night, they admitted Umut to the intensive care unit.

They took off his clothes and brought them in a trash bag.

They gave them to me.

I… How can I put this? It wasn’t because he took the medicine.

I wasn't upset about that.

I was really upset that he was complaining about her condition.

I’m so sorry, I really upset you.

I’d be angry, of course you upset me.

How could you do something like that to me?

I brought you to this day, through so many hardships.

How could you do something like that to me?

But thank goodness, Umut came back after that.

He won’t do it again. God willing, he won’t.

I don’t think about things like that anymore. I don’t recommend it.

But looking back now, I realize I was upset over such trivial things.

You can get past things like that.

I think now “If they’re wearing pants, I have my electric wheelchair.”

My electric wheelchair might even look better than their shoes.

Tell me something I don't know

I’m exhausted—start from the beginning

Enough, how many tests is this

Tired of burning without being consumed , right in the middle of the fire

All the songs are foolish

Straying from the right path right after looking into your eyes

To set my faith aside and then worship every word you say

To burn in your paradise

It’s hard to become earth, and it’s hard to till the earth.

It’s not easily shaped, not easily sown,

and results aren’t easily achieved.

I sent an email to the Federation. Swimming…

I sent an email saying I want to start swimming.

Until I was 19, I didn’t know how to swim at all.

I sent an email saying I wanted to take up a sport.

That was the first email I ever sent in my life.

And I described my physical condition.

“Both my legs are amputated, and I have four fingers on each hand,”

I described my physical condition and said I wanted to do a sport.

They got back to me and referred me to my swimming coach.

I got into the water for the first time.

I realized I was actually going to become an Olympic champion.

And the best athlete in the world.

I think starting to swim was my first breath.

2020 was the first step in that great journey that led to the top of the world,

marked by Umut’s absolute dominance in local pools.

I’m actually a very competitive person.

Because in today’s world, you can’t accomplish anything without fighting.

So I didn’t know what to do.

And my coach told me that day,

“You’re going to be a great athlete.”

The moment I first got into the water, I stayed afloat.

It was as if I’d been waiting for that moment my entire 19 years.

It was a completely different world for me.

So I started on October 7.

Even before October 7th comes, as soon as we enter October I’d say

“This is the month my life changed.”

It’s a very different feeling for me.