The IQ Latino team had the pleasure of interviewing a sports personality that we greatly admire, the Venezuelan Olympic swimmer and Pan American medalist Paola Pérez, who was ranked 20 in the open water 10-kilometer swim competition at Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Pérez’s path to reach the Olympics and represent his country was not easy, due to the lack of resources, qualified training and support in general. Even so, Paola established herself as one of the greatest swimmers in the history of Venezuela and as a clear example of sports and personal improvement.
Paola, tell us a little about your origins. Tell us about your family.
They are all athletes in my family. My dad did swimming, triathlon, athletics, jumping and everything you can imagine related to the aquatic environment. My mother was a synchronized swimming competitor, my sister Silvia is a South American medalist and my younger brother also swam. In general, sports were everything in my house, people breathed and ate sports…
How did you start swimming other styles?
I did breaststroke and butterfly, I didn’t specialize much in freestyle. From a very young age I got up early every day to train every day … It was after that time that I started doing open water.
What is the distinction between your specialty and swimming in a pool?
In my opinion, they are very different sports. The relationship they have is that both are made in the water but they differ a lot, from the competitor to the form. In the pool the conditions do not change, everything is calculated. In open water everything changes and influences. The temperature of the water, the preparation, the equipment, the climate… I have even been physically hit by how rough the sport can be.
How do you feel that your career and your personal life get on?
I honestly don’t have much of a personal life, this is what I spent most of my time on. This is not my hobby, it is my life. I have made many sacrifices to achieve my goals.
Tell us your opinion about the pressure of an Olympic athlete.
I feel that the greatest pressure from the athlete is that the public criticizes you and expects you to win all the medals without having seen everything that one has sacrificed to be there. Simone’s case is a representation of what happens a lot to us athletes.
Your transition when leaving Venezuela…
My transition from Venezuela has not been easy. I left Venezuela mainly because there weren’t many pools, and without them I can’t train. People usually emigrate because they cannot live. I left my country to be able to do what I love.
Tell us a bit about how difficult it is to be a Venezuelan athlete without the support of the government.
Being a Venezuelan athlete is not easy. It is not like in other sports, but the support from the Venezuelan government is none. I have come to Chile and I have to work and train at the same time. The expenses of an athlete are many and I have had to get them by my own means because they do not help us. That has been a great difficulty. In many countries the support for the athlete is total while in Venezuela it is not, it is hard. Even so, all people have difficulties and we ourselves have to learn to be our engine and face adversity to achieve our goals. We are our best support!
How the Covid19 has influenced your sports preparation.
The Covid has been a tough situation. I am an athlete who needs to train during various stages of the day and for a while I couldn’t go to the pools. In Chile the regulations have been long and strict and when they let me train it was only once a day. As an open water swimmer, I could not train enough and the athlete permits were given to Chilean national athletes. Still, I trained as I could!
Best moment of your career.
The best moment of my career was when I won the medal at the Pan American Games in Canada in 2015.
Worst moment of your career.
The worst moment had to be in Lima 2019, when I suffered a hypothermic attack as I was the only swimmer in the competition who did not have the regulation wetsuit. Then that triggered an emotional hole in which I found myself due to the pressure and general difficulties of the athlete.
What goals do you have for the future?
In the short term I will attend the competitions that come out, but my mind right now is focused more than anything on qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
A message for the audience?
A message for athletes in my country: I want to tell you that although it is difficult to be a high-performance athlete in Venezuela when you do not receive support, do not give up. I feel like when you really want something, he is going to get whatever way you get it.