COLOMBIA: CPLOMBIAN ROLLERBLADING CHAMPIONS HAVE HIGH HOPES FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THE UPCOMING PAN AMERICAN GAMES

Record ID: 588596

  • Title: COLOMBIA: CPLOMBIAN ROLLERBLADING CHAMPIONS HAVE HIGH HOPES FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THE UPCOMING PAN AMERICAN GAMES
  • Date: 31st July 2003
  • Summary: BOGOTA, COLOMBIA (RECENT) ( REUTERS ACCESS ALL) 1. VARIOUS OF ROLLERBLADERS 2. FEMALE ROLLERBLADING CHAMPION "CHECHY" BAENA 3. CHECHY ADJUSTING HER SKATES 4. ROLLERBLADERS 5. VARIOUS OF CHECHY WARMING UP 6. VARIOUS OF COACH GIVING ROLLERBLADERS INSTRUCTIONS 7. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CECILIA "CHECHY" BAENA, COLOMBIAN ROLLERBLADING CHAMPION, SAYING: "The Pan American Games are super-important for us because there are just two of us, a man and a woman, it requires a lot from us, and we really want to do it right and to win medals at the Pan Americans for our country." 8. CHECHY AND ROLLERBLADERS CROSSING THEMSELVES 9. ROLLERBLADERS STARTING COMPETITION 10. VARIOUS OF THE ROLLERBLADERS IN COMPETITION 11. BELL RINGS AND ROLLERBLADERS SKATE BY 12. INSTRUCTOR GIVING INSTRUCTION TO CHECHY 13. ROLLERBLA DERS PASS BY 14. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CECILIA "CHECHY" BAENA, SAYING: "Qualities? Let's see, a lot; I'm a smart athlete, very fast, but I don't have as much experience that's necessary to do a race like this. But, well, I think I'm talented enough to be in the race. It's going to be very hard because I won't be able to see the team, it's just one other racer, and in the race there are five of us, they'll be one from Argentina, one from United States, one from Chile, one from the Dominican Republic, anyway, there won't be a lot of people which means that the race, everyone will wait till the last moment, because who's going to push it if there's only five people in a race?" 15. ROLLERBLADERS CROSSING THE FINISH LINE 16. ROLLERBLADERS 17. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DIEGO ROSERO , CHAMPION COLOMBIAN ROLLERBLADER, SAYING: "The Pan Americans have two phases: the speed part and the end. I feel like I have a lot of strength to reach the end, it's the speed that I need improvement on. I have to have react faster, have a little more rhythm." 18. ROLLERBLADER IN TRAINING 19. DIEGO ROSERO TRAINING 20. DIEGO ROSERO 21. DIEGO ROSERO WAITING TO BEGIN RACE 22. SKATES 23. ROLLERBLADERS START RACE 24. ROLLERBLADERS IN COMPETITION 25. PEOPLE WATCHING RACE 26. ROLLERBLADERS RACING 27. BELL SOUNDS 28. ROLLERBLADERS COMPETING 29. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DIEGO ROSERO SAYING: "We're hoping to go for the medals, it's a little complicated, I don't like to say that we're going for two or three. Simply that we will give our best, we'll go at 110 percent of our energy, with all we have, competitively, we want the Colombia fans to know that we're giving it all we have." 30. VARIOUS OF ROLLERBLADERS IN COMPETITION 31. END OF RACE, DIEGO ROSERO WINS Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 15th August 2003 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BOGOTA,COLOMBIA
  • Country: Colombia
  • Reuters ID: LVA4648DGYSEM0N7GQ02R9K110M8
  • Story Text: World-class Colombian rollerblading champions have
    high hopes for thier participation in the upcoming Pan
    American Games.




    Fifteen-year-old rollerblader Chechy Baena has high
    hopes for the 2003 Pan-American games in Santa Domingo.

    "The Pan American Games are super important for us,"
    said skater Chechy Baena. "Because there are just two of
    us, a man and a woman, it requires a lot from us, and we
    really want to do it right and to win medals at the Pan
    Americans for our country."
    According to Chechy, she has what it takes to be a
    champion.

    "Qualities? Lets see, a lot; I'm a smart athlete, very
    fast, but I don't have as much experience that's necessary
    to do a race like this," Baena said. "But, well, I think
    I'm talented enough to be in the race. It's going to be
    very hard because I won't be able to see the team, it's
    just one other racer, and in the race there are five of us."
    Chechy's counterpart, 23-year-old Diego Rosero, brings
    in the experience, for he's considered to be one of the
    best rollerbladers in the world.

    During Christmas, when he was only 6-years-old, Diego
    received the most cherished present ever: he got his first
    pair of rollerbladers.

    What started as a boy's game led to hours of training
    and numerous competitions. Diego has represented his
    country since his early teens, and now plans to take his
    career and accomplishments all the way to the Pan-American
    games.

    "We're hoping to go for the medals, it's a little
    complicated, I don't like to say that we're going for two
    or three," said Rosero. "Simply that we will give our best,
    we'll go at 110 percent of our energy, with all we have,
    competitively, we want the Colombia fans to know that we're
    giving it all we have."
    But just like Chechy, Diego knows his flaws, and he's
    ready to work on them.

    "The Pan-Americans have two phases : the speed part and
    the end," Rosero said. "I feel like I have a lot of
    strength to reach the end, its the speed that I need
    improvement on. I have to have react faster, have a little
    more rhythm."
    If there's something certain about these young athletes
    it's that both want to bring back gold medals to
    Colombians, who are following their progress very closely.

    As far as the future, that's a whole new chapter for
    Diego. Rosero knows his athletic career has only a few more
    years to go, but he's ready to take the next challenge.

    Although today he might not have enough time to study,
    he knows that a career in Mechanical Engineering is part of
    his future. The same tenacity and hard work that led him
    to be a first class athlete will help him conquer new
    frontiers.


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