Alexander Cataldo beats the Parapan American Games: ‘I hope a change happens on a cultural level’

Santiago 2023 gets closer every day. The mega event will have between November 17 and 26 the competitions of the Parapan American Games where the ParaChile team will seek medals for the national Paralympic sport. In this context, one of the most beautiful characters in the preview is the wheelchair tennis player. Alexander Cataldo .

In a conversation with the official website of the Games, the para-athlete explained his feelings heading into the competition, where he will look to maintain the positive results he has achieved in recent times. “I feel good, calm, happy. I know I am at a high level and I hope to continue maintaining it until the Parapan American Games start,” he said.

Cataldo was a semi-finalist at the last version of the US Open in the doubles category, which took him to 14th place in the ITF rankings in that same category. . On North American soil, he shared the field with the American Casey Ratzlaff, who was his partner on the field.

He thus appears to be one of the names to watch in Santiago 2023. “I like defending my country, playing for Chile, I think doing it at home will be even better, I will play better. I know I will handle it in the best way.” detained.

Of course, the results are not the only important thing, according to him, since, beyond the medals that the Chileans can obtain, the para-athlete expresses his concern about the public’s general knowledge of the disciplines and hopes that the Games Pan American and Parapan American Games They constitute a breaking point for society. “I hope there will be a change at the cultural and sporting level, both among us and among the people,” he said.

“I think on a cultural level, people still don’t really know what sport is,” Cataldo pointed out in the aforementioned dialogue.

Alexander Cataldo and Bryan Tapia have been competing together for a long time. They are both from Antofagasta and since they were little, they have been a duo in their discipline. For over a decade they have competed in various categories in numerous competitions, where they strengthened a sporting relationship which they hope will culminate in the country’s capital.

“We train together, in the same academy,” Cataldo said. Coming from the fields of the far north, he then participated in the most prestigious tournaments in the world and he will now do so in a duo with one of his usual companions.

“We’ve known each other for a long time, we’ve been playing together since we were 10 years old. In this sense, we are super prepared” » added the wheelchair tennis player, currently 25 years old.