Venezuelan women who also excel in sports

Many things come to mind every time Venezuela is talked about, among them, the spectacular beauty of its women. And it is enough to mention that this country is the second with the most Miss Universe titles (7), only behind the United States (8). Although this is an attribute that characterizes the majority of Venezuelans, there is another aspect that has made them stand out in a great way and for several decades: their undoubted talent for sports.

Surely several have wondered, in which disciplines can females stand out? The answer is in all. There is no woman who does not know how to play soccer, baseball, track, and field, or even lift weights. They can do it all! Precisely, Venezuela is not far behind with its athletes, and although the country has not been characterized as a high competitor in the Olympic Games (to name a tournament), it has had the joy of seeing four girls hang a medal and wear the flag up to the podium.

As a way of honoring them, in addition to bringing out that perseverance and dedication that they always inject into their respective sport, here we present five Venezuelan women who have been a source of pride for their country. Let's keep supporting all those athletic warriors!

Deyna Castellanos

Venezuelan women's football has Deyna Castellanos as a reference. The one born in Maracay has amazed the country from a very young age, showing her talent with the ball in the different tournaments where she has participated. In fact, in her short career, she has managed to play two U-17 World Cups, as well as being the youngest player to be nominated for The Best and Puskás awards.

At the college level, Deyna played for the Florida State Seminoles where she won the 2018 top championship and scored a total of 48 goals in four seasons. That outstanding performance took her to Atlético de Madrid in 2020, thus having her first professional experience. To this day, she is an icon of South American women's football.

Yulimar Rojas

Record after record after record. This is how Yulimar's life has been since she started taking her first leaps in athletics. Whether in Youth Championships, Pan-American, Bolivarian Games, South American, and World athletics championships, even the Olympic Games themselves, the Venezuelan has not stopped improving each of her own personal marks.

In her medal table, the golds obtained by a triple jump in the World Championship (2017 and 2019), South American Championship (2015), World Indoor Championship (2016 and 2018), Olympic Games (2016), and in the South American Games (2014) stand out. in the high jump. In 2020 she was chosen as the Best Female Athlete by World Athletics, the governing body of world athletics.

Also read: Women score goals against sexism in Colombia with the final of Libertadores

Stefany Hernandez

This 29-year-old has excelled in a very rare sport: BMX cycling. Her beginnings were in the 2009 Bolivarian Games, where she won and that motivated her to go to France to train and compete against rivals who had already participated in the 2008 Olympics. From there she conquered all possible European podiums.

His first Olympic participation was in London 2012, remaining in ninth place, but four years later she managed to hang the bronze medal after a close race against the Colombian Mariana Pajón and the American Alise Post, two great opponents that she has had in her career as a cyclist. In 2015 she won the BMX Cycling World Championship in Zolder, Belgium.

Andreina Pinto

For this athlete, life is tastier in the water. Andreína is a "mermaid" who has been standing out in swimming from an early age, in fact, at the age of 16 she entered her name in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. She even obtained an Olympic diploma for London 2012 by finishing eighth in the final, not to mention that during the semifinals she achieved a personal, Venezuelan, and South American record in the 800 meters freestyle.

And it is that beyond her performances in the Olympic Games, Andreína has a medal table worth admiring: gold, silver (2), and bronze in the South American Games in Medellín 2010. As well as gold (4), silver and bronze in the Central Americans and del Caribe 2010 in Mayagüez. It is a reference to Venezuelan swimming.

Robeilys Peinado

Another young Olympian with great potential. From the age of three she began in rhythmic gymnastics, but as she grew older she had to switch to pole vaulting in order to better exploit her qualities. Without a doubt, it was the best decision she could make, since the passion she has had for this discipline has paid off.

In 2013, at the age of 16, she won a gold medal at the World Junior Athletics Championships in Ukraine, silver at the Pan American Junior Athletics Championships in Colombia, another gold at the National Athletics Championships in Venezuela, and achieved a national record. at the Bolivarian Games in Peru. In 2014 she obtained silver in the Youth Olympic Games and in the South American Games. For the following years, she continued breaking records in different countries and winning more medals, such as the one achieved in the 2017 London World Athletics Championships.