What do the Olympic Games mean for Latin and Spanish sports stars?

Daniel Dhers (Venezuela) / BMX freestyle (silver in Tokyo 2020)

During the Madrid Urban Sports, held two weeks ago, the Olympic silver medalist in BMX freestyle, Daniel Dherswanted to join the celebration of Olympic Day 2022.

“The Olympic Games for me mean unity, they mean joy, they mean power to overcome. Because going to an Olympic Games is not easy at all. The amount of work you have to put in to get there and then try to win a medal is incredible. There are years of jobs behind it and that’s what I feel the Olympic Games mean: they represent the amount of worked in order to achieve your goals and discipline“, explained the Venezuelan.

But in addition, Dhers sees the Olympic Games as a moment in which the world unites for peace.

“Everyone has their political opinion, their religious differences, their differences in social spheres. But when the Olympic Games are on, everyone comes together and it’s something very, very nice. It’s something that I’ve loved coming from Venezuela, which It is a difficult and politically divided country. It has been very nice to see that people have come together to support their Venezuelan athletes.”

“The Olympic Games contribute to peace because people focus a lot on what sport is. Sport generates chance chancegenerates the possibility that people dedicate themselves to something beautiful, that they dedicate themselves to society, that they dedicate themselves to the good things“, he sentenced.

READ MORE: Five things to know about Daniel Dhers

Angelo Caro (Peru) / Skateboarding (5th in Tokyo 2020)

Ready to begin the process of qualifying for what would be his second Olympic Games, those of paris 2024the young man Angelo Caro expresses the importance of being at the debut of skateboarding in Tokyo 2020 and being an image and example of resilience.

“It was very important. It was also very emotional for many people when They saw me fall and get back up. Despite the bad I had at the beginning, I was able to finish very well. That was very important for many Peruvians and for many people who feel represented by me.”

READ MORE: Angelo Caro, from Peru, shines in the debut of street skateboarding

B-Girl Furia (España) / Breaking

The breakingwhich will make its Olympic debut in Paris 2024, although based on the battles of B-boys and B-girls, it also represents the union between athletes.

This is how B-girl Furia explains it, from Spain, which is currently part of the world top 10.

“Although we are battling, we always do it from the respect and love. What happens on the track, stays on the track.”

Kenneth Tencio (Costa Rica) / BMX freestyle (4th in Tokyo)

Kenneth Tencio, BMX freestyle rider who was just on the verge of the podium at Tokyo 2020, was also able to assess first-hand, in the debut of his sport at the Games, what it means to be there; and, like so many others, he highlighted the union that is lived.

“For me the Olympic Games mean and represent that union of warriors of the society. Sport in society is something that people perhaps do not dimension and it is a moment of inspiration for all countries. A moment of union means that moment in which we all arrive, prepare to be there and that inspires many people, inspires many children and not only in sports, but in everything we do. It’s a unique event and it’s like a graduation of your sports career, “she reflects.

“The Olympic Games bring people from all countries together. We come together, we share a passion for sport, we share a feeling for what we do and I think that’s what attracts all people the most. Also, it’s very inclusivethere are all kinds of sports, so that helps us a lot to unite with the same feeling for the sport.”

This feeling is not limited to sport, but Tencio also sees the Games as one of the engines for peace: “Sport and the Olympic Games also represent peace for me, because as it is a moment of union, it is not about colors, it’s not about origin, it’s not about country, it’s just about giving your best.

READ MORE: Five things to know about Kenneth Tencio

Niko Shera (Spain) / Judo (x2 world champion)

The Olympic Games not only have an impact globally, but also in the careers of many athletes.

It is the case of Nikoloz Sherazadishvili. The two-time world champion judo in fact he started in his sport thanks to them.

“The Olympic Games are something special. I practically started doing judo thanks to them. I am from Georgia and at the 2004 Athens Games a Georgian [Zurab Zviadauri] He was Olympic champion in judo. And I remember that feeling of saying ‘I I also want to be champion Olympic’. I realized that the Olympics were a very big thing,” he acknowledges.

Thus, the Spaniard of Georgian origin years later arrived at the Tokyo 2020 Games and, although he could not win a medal there, ‘Shera’ already has his sights set on Paris 2024.

READ MORE: Niko Shera: “I’m starting from scratch”