A group of four Hispanic teenagers were the first female athletes to represent the Latino community and their club, Trilatino Juniors, in the National Triathlon Championship, a multisport that is based on running, swimming, and cycling. And in which Latino participation is very low, especially among young people.
With great pride, these four Hispanic teenagers between 16 and 19 years old, students from The Bronx, celebrate the achievement of being the first female athletes from New York to represent their community in the National Triathlon Championship.
“When we went to Nationals, we couldn’t believe it, we were in shock, every night we couldn’t sleep,” says athlete Andrea Rodríguez.
The National Triathlon Championships were held in August in Milwaukee.
Triathlon is a sport that involves the performance of three sports disciplines: swimming, cycling and running, which are carried out in order and without interruption between one test and the next.
But for these young women this multisport means much more.
“Family, breaking barriers, teamwork, something incredible,” the girls say.
These young women are part of Trilatino, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to training Latino students so they can participate in local and national triathlons.
They say that when they started last year, they did not expect to reach national competition during their first season. Since few had practiced these sports.
“I couldn’t float, I couldn’t swim, I couldn’t hold my breath, not even on the bike, I fell, so in my mind I didn’t think I could do it,” says athlete Andrea Rodríguez.
And personally, they say they began to have more confidence in themselves.
“I was very shy, I never spoke, I had a bunch of friends, I never tried to do something new outside my comfort zone,” says athlete Nailea Cárdenas.
Intense practice and the desire to excel in a sport little known to Hispanics kept them motivated.
“He taught us to have a lot of discipline because we trained six times a week, more school, more work,” says Andrea Rodríguez.
But they say all the effort was worth it.
Dolly Amigon, Trilatino’s Development Director, says that practicing this sport is expensive, something that limits the number of young Hispanics who participate in the national triathlon.
“And the training is individual and only those who can afford the geartrips, clothing and other accessories can participate,” says Dolly Amigon, Development Director of Trilatino.
The Trilatino organization covers all these expenses through private donations from the Yankees Foundation, among other organizations.
These young women say they will continue training to participate in roads and also advance in their studies.
Next year Trilatino will train around 20 new students to participate in local races in hopes of continuing to break records.
