Bart Mroz wants to lead by example

"Being a disabled person, sometimes I reach my limit and I should stop but in my mind I always want to do more."

With the World Championship less than four months away, Para badminton player Bartlomiej Mroz is out to fulfil not only his personal goals, but inspire others to grow the sport in his native Poland.

The SU5 player, ranked No.2 in the world, will kick off his build up to the Worlds at the Peru Para Badminton International from 1-6 August, one of 10 tournaments he plans to take part in this year.

"I hope my game will be on the top level and I hope I can show everybody that I'm the best in the world," Mroz said. "Mentally my goal is to be the best and I hope my game will get me into the finals."

Mroz has been training with the Polish national badminton team for the past four years and devotes as much as eight hours a day to training and physical exercise. Practicing with the best players of his country demands huge effort, which Mroz regards as an incentive to push harder.

"If I want to stay the No.2 in the world or advance, I must play in every tournament to collect more experience with new players, older players who are on the top," he said.

Mroz will have that opportunity to do just that at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Para Badminton World Championship, which takes place from 21-26 November in Ulsan, South Korea.

But the 22-year-old ultimately has his sights on the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, where badminton will make its debut.

"I feel nothing is too much for me, the limit is in the mind," he said.

As the pioneer of his sport in Poland, Mroz said he felt "an obligation" to promote Para badminton every chance he gets. The sport already boasts eight BWF-licensed Para athletes in Poland, and Mroz hopes that his example and successes will help attract more athletes.

In fact, he is working on a book, which is expected to publish later this year.

"I'm working very hard on the development of the sport and I hope that my book about the history of Para badminton in Poland will be published in November or December," Mroz said.

The book, which will be part autobiography, is co-authored by Dr. Justyna Charasna Blachucik, Chair of Humanities at the Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Opole University of Technology.

"I'm a very ambitious person and this is my advantage but also a minus. Being a disabled person, sometimes I reach my limit and I should stop but in my mind I always want to do more."