Saturday, November 18th, 2023.- Colombia claimed gold and silver at the Centro Acuático at the Estadio Nacional in Santiago, specifically in the female's SM7 200-meter individual medley, sparking Latin American jubilation on the third day of competition. 

Sara Vargas and Zharit Rodríguez fiercely contested the gold medal throughout the four laps of the competition, with Vargas ultimately emerging as the winner, stopping the clock at a time of 3:06.32, thus establishing the Parapan American record for the event. 

Following closely, just 2 seconds behind, Rodríguez finished, confirming Colombia's dominance in the event. The bronze went to Mallory Weggemen of the United States (3:10.43). 

It should be noted that this category includes swimmers with limited movement of the arms, torso, and legs, ranging from low to moderate levels. 

A few minutes earlier, the first Para Swimming final took place in the male's SB2 50m breaststroke category. The gold medal, the first of the entire Parapan American event, went to Mexican José Castoerna, with a time of 57.75. His compatriots Cristopher Tronco and Marcos Zarate followed, winning silver with 1:06.65 and bronze with 1:13.04, respectively. 

In this category, swimmers with very limited coordination of the torso, legs, and hands, and slightly reduced functioning of the arms, participate. 

The action continues throughout the day at the Centro de Deportes Acuáticos, with 18 medal events still to be contested. 


Written by José Tomás Lambert; translated by Pía Barriga / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
Ph: Marcelo Hernández / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport