By Jessica Gutiérrez and Wensceslao Montemayor
Olympic history of Nuevo León.
Archery is an age-old practice that, if linked mainly to survival, both in the case of hunting and in the case of war, became a sporting activity considered by some as an art that promotes excellence.
And if we talk about excellence today, it was the turn of the future of Mexican gymnastics, Jessica Gutierrez, to talk with the archer of Nuevo León, Mariana Avitia, Olympic medalist, about this great sport.
How were your beginnings in the discipline of archery?
My start was when I was 7 years old, I started with my older brother Santiago, I saw him competing in a national olympiad and from there I started to like this sport.
I started training and as the days go by I was involved in archery and I am really in love with what I do.
How do you feel being the first woman in Nuevo León to win a medal in an Olympic Games?
For me it is a great pride to be the first athlete of Nuevo León to win an Olympic medal, and it is also very important for me because it is marked in the history of Nuevo León and the truth that motivates me to get to the best, to continue trying hard.
During your sports career, what has been your best experience?
My best experience in my sports career has been to have gone to two Olympic Games, the first in Beijing and the second in London and of course the most important thing is to have won an Olympic medal in London, that has been my best experience, to feel it , to live it, to enjoy it and even more to know that my family was with me at that time and that together we could enjoy it, it has been one of the most beautiful moments I have had in my whole life.
What is the best advice you have been given and who gave it to you?
The truth is that there have been many, but there is one that my husband told me a few days ago, he told me to compete against myself and the truth is that it is something very true that I had not heard it for a long time.
In competing against yourself, you are your own rival. Do not look at other people when they are pulling or when they are doing a dive, or what they are doing in their sport. The important thing is that you have to compete against yourself and not focus on others, just focus on what you are doing and things start to happen little by little.
What do you feel about the fact that archery was not a very common sport to practice and after many people started seeing you, it become a more popular sport?
It feels very beautiful, because just in 2008 at the Beijing Olympic Games, archery, before that was not common, the Olympic Games passed, many people watched the Olympic Games and saw Juan Rene Serrano, Aida Román , they saw Mariana Avitia, so many children wanted to practice this sport and then even more in 2012 when they won the two Olympic medals, from there the archery boomed, and the truth is that I hope it continues to grow, because right now in Nuevo León, as in the whole country, archery has grown too much and the truth is that it makes me very proud, to have been in the beginning in a sport that was nothing and that now is much and that already It has two Olympic medals and that is working to get more, it is something very nice.
What advice would you like to give to all those people who want to reach that same goal of competing in an Olympic Games, whether in archery or any other sport?
The advice I can give them is to don’t stop dreaming, that dreams come true. I dreamed a thousand times of being in an Olympic Games, and once, well twice, I was fulfilled and even more to win an Olympic medal. You have to fight, you have to strive, be disciplined, leave many things to get to what you want. The best advice I can give them is to do it with all their heart. Always fight for what you want and you will see that little by little things will be going in your favor.
