Wednesday, November 1st.- Martín Kouyoumdjian won the bronze medal in the male's 400 meters final at the Pan American Games. The race took place at the Estadio Nacional, in heavy rain, with the presence of about 30,000 people who continued to support the local athlete.
Kouyoumdjian initially finished in fourth place with a time of 46.58 seconds, but the disqualification of the Colombian runner, Anthony Zambrano, allowed the local athlete to move up to the podium.
Regarding his achievement, Kouyoumdjian explained, "It's amazing, super exciting, like, in this athletic career I've had, in a few years, the stars have aligned for me, and I've managed to win many awards. I say it's luck, but in the end, hard work is what brings all of this. I believe in the achievement, so, I'm really surprised, thanks a lot to the audience, who helped me run and finish the race."
Regarding his rival's disqualification, the athlete mentioned, "I was a bit scared that I might be disqualified for stepping on a line that I felt I might have touched, but it seems not, and well, very happy, so thank you very much. This medal is impressive, what an emotion."
But the good news for Martín Kouyoumdjian didn't end with the Pan American bronze.
Before the competition, he received the news that he is going to the United States to live and compete in the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). "Well, just today I received the news that I'm going to the United States to live, that I'm going to compete in the NCAA, which is a college league, one of the best in the world, if not the best. I had this opportunity, and I decided to take it because it's going to help me develop as an athlete and as a student, which is the most important thing for me. I want to study Mechanical Engineering," he concluded.
The winner of the race was the Brazilian Lucas Conceicao, with a time of 45.77, while the silver went to the Mexican Luis Antonio Avilés, with a time of 45.97.
Written by Ernesto Bustos B. – Herman Chanampa / Photosport
Photo by Andres Pina/Santiago 2023 / Photosport
