Argentinian woman in wheelchair dances in tango championships: 'Dancing is ... liberating'

Published January 02, 2017

Argentine dancers Gabriela Fernanda Torres and Pablo Rafael Pereyra, compete in the stage category at the World Tango Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Aug. 21, 2015. Torres says she doesnât want special treatment, and hopes the judges to evaluate the couple as artists. If they are chosen, they will move on to the semi-finals. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Gabriela Fernanda Torres strikes a unique pose as she competes with hundreds of other dancers in this year's World Tango Championships in Argentina. The 37-year-old Argentine uses a wheelchair.

Torres says she was paralyzed in a car accident when she was 2 years old, but nonetheless grew up with a love of dancing.

In Friday's preliminary classification round, Torres wore a black dress, moving her arms and making facial expressions in sync with the music. At one point, her partner lifted her from the wheelchair.

Torres says she doesn't want special treatment and hopes the judges evaluate the couple as artists. If they are chosen, they will move on to the semifinals this weekend.

Torres says that "dancing is a totally motivating, liberating."