Meredith Aldis | Broadcast Intern

Jimmy Bendeck, a Baylor men’s tennis player, competed in the University Games this past summer and represented Honduras.

Bendeck said his favorite memory from the entire event was from the opening ceremony.

“When we first got out of the bus, there was a bunch of fans waiting and cheering for us and they all had these Corgi dogs. They were all cheering with the Corgi dogs and holding them and there was like two hundred. I was just like, ‘What is going on?'” But I loved it because I love dogs,” Bendeck said.

Even though Jimmy only lived in Honduras for six years, he spent a month training there this past summer and felt like he was getting back to his roots. He was the only athlete representing Honduras in tennis, but the other Honduran athletes had his back the entire time.

“They were really welcoming and really supportive. They came and watched my match and they made a big difference with cheering and getting me through some big moments in my match,” Bendeck said.

Bendeck’s first match was against a seated player from Sri Lanka and he pulled through despite the heat.

“One of the difficult things about Taipei was that I was extremely hot, so it was difficult. The conditions were very difficult,” Bendeck said.

His next match was against an athlete from Taipei.

“He was accustomed to the environment and he had a lot of people supporting him throughout the match. They are amazing. They supported me too, which was rare and really awesome, but he was there ready to play more than I was,” Bendeck said.

Even though he lost the match in the third round, Bendeck said he is grateful for all of the support he had.

“I’m playing for something bigger than myself. The support from Honduras and the support from Baylor, it’s not comparable to when you are just playing individual tennis,” Bendeck said.