July 29th 2024.
Competing at the Olympics is a dream come true for any athlete, but for Natalia Escalera, it was a bittersweet experience. The Mexican gymnast had been training hard for this moment, but just days before the Games, she suffered a torn ligament in her left foot. Despite the injury, she refused to withdraw from the competition. Her determination and bravery were on full display as she competed in the uneven bars event.
Escalera, 22 years old, had to deal with the pain throughout her routine. She managed to finish her routine with a score of 12.800, the highest among all the Mexican athletes. But as soon as she landed her dismount, she couldn't hold back the tears anymore. The pain was too much, and she needed help from her coach to move away from the competition area. She was then carried to a nearby chair.
In an interview after her performance, Escalera revealed the extent of her injury and the measures she had to take to compete. She said, "I had said I wasn't going to participate, but I had to take as many pills as I could to be able to do it and I'm very happy because I was able to fulfill my dream." She also mentioned that every time she put her foot on the bar, she felt excruciating pain, but she pushed through it, praying to complete her routine without further harm.
Escalera's injury was evident as she could barely walk after her routine. Before competing, she had posted on Instagram about her injury and how it had affected her training. She wrote, "Unfortunately, in the last training session I tore the plantar tendon in my left leg where I had another tear in my calf. It hurts me a lot not being able to do all around as I would have liked, sadly I was told not to compete by the doctors." However, she didn't let this setback stop her from living her dream of competing at the Olympics.
Raul Carrillo, one of Mexico's team doctors, explained that Escalera's injury was a partial tear of the plantar tendon, which occurred a week ago during training. He also mentioned that it would require rest for recovery, and the timeframe could vary from four to six weeks depending on the size of the tear.
Escalera's teammate, Alexa Moreno, also made her Olympic debut in Paris, but she too had to compete with an injury. She had cartilage damage in her right knee and had to compete without her usual physiotherapist, who couldn't travel with the team. Moreno expressed her frustration, saying, "I'm injured, and the physiotherapist who was with me the whole way in camp was not among the doctors they brought. It was a person who doesn't really know me and doesn't know how they bandaged me."
Despite the challenges, Mexico has already won one medal at the Olympics, thanks to the bronze won by the women's team archery trio. As for Escalera and Moreno, they have shown incredible strength and determination, representing their country with pride and courage. We can only imagine the pain and sacrifices they had to endure to make it to the biggest stage in the world. We applaud their bravery and wish them a speedy recovery.
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