Growing up in Brazil, Paula Korsakas always loved sports. Her very first memories are of playing volleyball, handball, basketball and tennis in the garden with her siblings. When they didn’t have the proper equipment, they would fashion it from items around the house: makeshift nets, bases, hoops, bats, and racquets. Her parents were also very active, constantly playing games with their children and encouraging each of them to play as many sports as they wanted. Her favorite sport was volleyball, which she played on weekends with school friends in the streets near her house and during summer breaks on the beach.

At 14 years old, Paula and her mom signed up for a YMCA fitness class, not knowing what to expect. To their surprise, it was an all-ages basketball team, where Paula was the youngest player by decades. Paula never intended to play in a basketball league. For her, it was just a fun activity to play with her family in the backyard. Instead of allowing the age gap or her lack of experience to deter her, she drew inspiration from the opportunity. To this day, she recalls in vivid detail everything from the bond with her teammates to the way it felt to play. “That really was a defining point in my life,” she says. “After that, I didn’t stop playing basketball.”