Unprecedented: a participant with Down syndrome in the Dakar Rally
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The participation of Lucas Barrón, with Down syndrome, is another sign that sport and disabilities go hand in hand
Last Sunday, January 6, the Dakar Rally took place in Peru. This edition, for the first time in its 41 years, will receive a participant with Down syndrome. Lucas Barrón, 25, will accompany his father, Jacques Barrón, as co-pilot.
Leer en español: Sin precedentes: participante con síndrome de Down en el Rally Dakar
This race, which has ten stages, is considered the most dangerous of this type of tracks, because, in this case, 70% of its scenes are in the sand. However, this is not causing for fear for Barrón, who has played different sports during his life. In September of 2018, he participated in the Dakar Series-Desafío Inca, race to prepare for the current rally. In this race, father and son finished in position 7.
Despite what one might believe, people with Down syndrome can develop all kinds of activities and even improve them impeccably, thanks to their perfectionism and intensity in work. That is why Lucas always practiced sports such as swimming, soccer, surfing, cycling and water skiing, according to El Universo. So, according to the same medium, the 25-year-old said he is "ready to face the dunes of the desert."
Although he does not participate as a driver, his father said, according to CNN, that Lucas Barrón will be the eyes of the car to avoid impacts. Thanks to his extensive knowledge of mechanics and of the terrain, he can avoid any problem, or solve it. According to El Universo, his father said that Barrón "knows how to see the temperature of the belt, oil and tire pressure," something he has learned thanks to his father who is an engineer.
Lucas Barrón entered the competition like any other competitor, where he was asked to have documents in order and pass medical exams. Currently, he already has the license of the International Automobile Federation, which allows him to participate in the Dakar Rally.
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Disability and sport
Currently, different organizations seek the rehabilitation of people with varying disabilities through sports, as it favors not only physically, but in interpersonal relationships, companionship and discipline. According to the medical portal Sunrise Medical, "sports can facilitate rehabilitation and serve as therapy for people with a physical disability (motor), intellectual (psychic) or mixed (psychomotor) to recover mobility or improve."
In the specific case of Down syndrome, playing sports not only works as rehabilitation but also as social inclusion. According to the DOWN foundation of Spain, sport "improves general coordination, helps with body posture, development of spatial orientation, development of strength, endurance, flexibility and muscle tone." In addition to this, it also helps in the progressive improvement of learning, social skills, and self-esteem.
After the Second World War, where the first such center in England dates, sports, and skills suitable for people with physical and cognitive disabilities, including down syndrome, have been created.
However, there are very few opportunities in which these people can compete in the original versions of sports, such as what happens in the case of Lucas Barrón. For example, the DOWN Foundation organizes sporting events that bring together people with and without Down syndrome to make the sport even more inclusive and genuinely inclusive.
LatinAmerican Post | Juliana Suárez
Translated from "Sin precedentes: participante con síndrome de Down en el Rally Dakar"
