The student María Paula Lloreda from grade 10 obtained third place, standing out in the National Athletics Tournament U14 and U16 in the pentathlon competition. This competition took place between the 30th and 31st of October in the city of Ibagué, where more than 3,000 athletes from different parts of the country gathered. Valle del Cauca, which María Paula represents was declared champion.
María Paula has been practising this demanding sport for approximately 4 years, and she is among the best nationally. Her love for sports began at CCB when she practiced gymnastics as an extracurricular class. Thanks to gymnastics her love for physical activities and her discipline when it comes to practicing sports began.
“At the beginning of the London 2012 Olympic Games when I saw Caterine Ibargüen compete, I found everything she did very interesting. I talked to my dad because I wanted to do the triple jump. It was difficult to find a place to practice this sport, so in the meantime I was still doing gymnastics. It became an obsession for me to practice this sport and I managed to get in touch with a teacher to start this new stage”. said María Paula.
The beginning of Maria Paula’s career was in the Athletics Stadium “Pedro Grajales”, and she continues to train there. She now represents Valle del Cauca, training from 4:00 pm to 6:30 pm, leaving every drop of sweat on the brick-coloured lane that she runs on a daily basis. When she has a competition, she has to measure her times, always looking to improve her pace and splits.
“I always give myself a blessing and go out. When I’m running I don’t think about anything, I don’t listen to anything, there are no nerves, I let go of everything when I’m running. I see people shouting in the videos, but when I run, I just listen to my footsteps,” said María Paula.
In a year María Paula will move to the U18 category, which demands a higher level of training. She will also have a greater number of competitions. A huge challenge because she will have to balance her training with her school activities so as not to neglect any of them.
“She will go as far as she decides to go in athletics. The sport gives her so much satisfaction that she will continue with her sports practices, and we know that she is looking for a university that will accept her and support her in her sport,” said Yolanda Gómez, Maria Paula’s mother.
We wish you the best María Paula! Keep listening to your footsteps. They are bound to take you on a path towards victory.
