Chile at the 2018 Winter Paralympics facts for kids

Chile sent a team of amazing athletes to the 2018 Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. These games are a big international sports event for athletes with disabilities. Four Chilean athletes competed in para-alpine skiing.

To get ready for the Paralympics, the skiers worked very hard. Starting in November 2017, they took part in 15 races. These races were held in Europe, the United States, and Canada. These events helped them prepare and qualify for the big competition in South Korea.

One of the athletes, Santiago Vega, had already competed in the 2014 Winter Paralympics. For Nicolás Bisquert, Diego Seguel, and Julio Soto, the 2018 Games were their first time at the Paralympic Games.

Team Chile

Chile had four athletes representing the country at the 2018 Winter Paralympics. One of the team members, Diego Seguel, had competed for Chile before. He was part of Team Chile in another sport, para-athletics, at international events.

To qualify for the Paralympics, each athlete needed to earn enough points. By February 2018, all four skiers had reached 220 points or more. They had to earn these points between the end of the 2014 Winter Paralympics and February 2018.

Santiago Vega was the only team member who had competed in the 2014 Winter Paralympics for Chile. For Nicolás Bisquert, Diego Seguel, and Julio Soto, the 2018 Games were their first Paralympic experience.

Here is a list of the athletes who were part of Team Chile for the 2018 Games:

Para-alpine Skiing

Para-alpine skiing is a sport where athletes with disabilities race down snowy mountains on skis. It includes different types of races like slalom, giant slalom, super-G, and downhill.

Getting Ready for the Paralympics

The Chilean skiers went to Pyeongchang hoping to achieve their best results ever. Chile has a history of competing in para-alpine skiing at the Winter Paralympics. They sent teams in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014. Their best performance was in 2010. That year, Patricio Morande finished fourteenth in the giant slalom race.

The team's coach is Carlos Torres. They trained for the South Korea games at the La Parva Ski Center in Chile. While training there, they stayed at the Ski Chile Hotel in Farellones. The team worked together for more than 170 days before heading to the Winter Paralympics. From November 2017 to February 2018, they participated in 15 races. These races were held in Europe, the United States, and Canada. They also had special national team training camps to improve their skills.

Meet the Skiers

Here are the skiers who represented Chile:

Julio Soto's Journey

Julio Soto competed in North America in January 2018. In a Giant Slalom race, he finished sixth with a time of 1 minute and 31 seconds. This great result allowed him to qualify for the Giant Slalom race in South Korea.

At the same competition in Winter Park, Nicolás Bisquertt won the Giant Slalom race. He even beat world champion Corey Peters. Soto also qualified for the Slalom race because he finished fifth in a 2017 competition. He was the first Chilean athlete to qualify for the South Korea games. Soto shared that he hoped to finish in the top 20 in the Slalom race in Pyeongchang.

When Julio was 9 years old, he started feeling pain in his legs. Doctors later found out he had osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. To help him, doctors had to remove part of one of his legs. As part of his recovery, he started playing sports. After finishing university, he became a Level 1 Ski Instructor. In 2015, he joined Team Chile and began representing his country in ski races around the world.

Nicolás Bisquert's Story

Nicolás Bisquertt also went to a ski race in Winter Park in January 2018 with his teammates. Because of his past race results, he had already qualified for two events in South Korea. After his races in Winter Park, he also qualified for the Super G event in Pyeongchang. In January 2018, Bisquertt said he was aiming to win a medal at the 2018 Winter Paralympics.

When he was 14 years old, Bisquertt was in a motorcycle accident. The accident badly hurt his spine.

Diego Seguel's Path

Before the 2018 Winter Paralympics, Diego Seguel competed in a ski race in January 2018 in Winter Park. He finished third in the Giant Slalom. This was his first time finishing in the top three at an international ski race. Because of his strong finishes in Winter Park, he qualified for the slalom and giant slalom races in South Korea.

In 2002, when Diego Seguel was 17 years old, he had a snowboarding accident. This accident caused a disability that affected his spine. One year after the accident, he started para-alpine skiing using a special mono-ski. He has been competing for Chile every year since 2011.

Santiago Vega

Santiago Vega was the only member of the team who had competed in the Winter Paralympics before. He represented Chile at the 2014 Winter Paralympics.

Race Results

The table below shows the events the Chilean athletes competed in. The results would be filled in after the races.

See also

In Spanish: Chile en los Juegos Paralímpicos de Pyeongchang 2018 para niños