With a competitive spirit, hard work and lots of chewing gum, this 13-year-old Colombian swimmer is going for gold at the Tokyo Paralympics — Assembly

Training for the Paralympics requires maturity and focus, but Sara Vargas still finds time to be a teenager.

Assembly's Game Changers series features female athletes around the world who defy convention on and off the field.

There's a lot 13-year-old Sara Vargas likes about being a champion para-swimmer: winning medals, beating out her rivals, representing her home country. But what she loves most is not the fame or the accolades, it's just being in the water.

"I don't really know how to explain it. But once I go into the pool during training, I kind of forget everything else, which is very relaxing," Sara shares. "I really like being in the pool."

Sara started swimming when she was 5 years old in her hometown of Mesitas del Colegio. After moving to Bogota in 2016 for health treatments — Sara has XHL X-linked rickets and chondrodysplasia — she started training for professional competitions.

Although Sara makes time for playing video games with her friends and learning to cook with her mom, her training schedule is rigorous. She trains five hours a day, Monday through Saturday, and takes online classes (something she started before COVID-19 made it standard). But Sara’s hard work is already paying off. She was the youngest athlete at the Parapan American Games Lima 2019, where she won four gold medals and one silver.

None of her accomplishments would be possible without the support of her biggest fans: her family. “The support I get from my parents and my sister, like my family is unconditional,” Sara says. “They support me in everything. My mom in particular is very happy because as a disabled person here in Colombia you don’t get to do much. She has the same disability I have.”

After qualifying for the Tokyo Paralympics, Sara’s dreams are bigger than ever. She wants to continue improving and become the best Paralympic swimmer in the world. But she also hopes to inspire other people with disabilities to join para-sports and raise awareness about this movement.

After her big wins in Lima, we talked to Sara about preparing for international competitions, her go-to snacks and what motivates her to go for gold.

María Rendo (MR): What were your main goals when you started training for competitions?

Sara Vargas (SV): The Parapan American Games Lima 2019 were our goal. That was our first goal. Well... the second one actually. The first was to overcome my rival who is my teammate, improve my times, become a national champion and then the other competitions and also qualifying functionally.

MR: Did you think you were going to win medals?

SV: Getting closer and training for that event, yes. Definitely, yes. Sometimes I say no and I don't know why I say that. Because actually I did! That's why we're already training for it and we also had a lot of competitions before. We looked at the times, we knew we had a chance to win at least one medal. So yes, I could imagine it. And that was also the goal! Not getting any medals, I would’ve been disappointed.

MR: What is the most challenging part of training for the Paralympics? Is it different from training for the Parapan American Games?

SV: It's hard because actually training for these two competitions is very hard, not only physically, but also mentally, because you’re not going to just any competition. You only have one chance. In each competition, one chance. You have to know how to take advantage of it, but also be calm and all. Because you start looking at the competition, who aren’t the same as in Latin America, and you start to get so scared. But that's what we prepare ourselves mentally for. The training for the Pan American Games, too, was tough. We're more judgmental about food than before and...I would believe that the training for each event is different, but you struggle.

MR: And you get stricter with your diet?

SV: Yeah, especially me because actually, I eat a lot of sweets. And well, almost not really anymore but I used to...yeah, terrible. But we are already more judicious about food and that is also a goal we have. But it's a super weird meal plan there, but we prepare a lot with food, psychology and all that.

MR: I'm sorry to make you think about the candy you must be missing right now, but what's your favorite?

SV: Gum!

MR: Gum! Which flavour?

SV: Any flavour. I love gum! Although it does not do so much harm as, for example, chocolates actually, but what a delight!

MR: Nothing with arequipe [a caramel-like candy made of milk]?

SV: No, nothing with arequipe. I don’t really like arequipe, but I like mixing arequipe with Cheetos.

MR: I've never heard anyone say they eat arequipe with Cheetos!

SV: It's delicious. You have to try it.

MR: I will! Ok, I won’t ask you about this anymore because I think you’re suffering.

SV: Yes, a lot [laughs]!

MR: Let’s talk about something that makes you feel better. How do you feel representing Colombia in these international competitions?

SV: I mean, all positive, right? Super happy. And it's not that I feel pressure to represent Colombia because I always give my best. I'm super happy because at some point I dreamed about this and it came true so...wow!

MR: When you compete, what do you want spectators watching you to think?

SV: It depends because, if it's the coach, “Bravo!” I never thought about it really, but I would like them to think...if it was a person like me or a person with a disability: “I want to be like her or better,” something like that. But it's not that I swim, it’s not because I want to set an example. I swim because I like it and if I become an example for someone, then great. It's about doing it the best way possible.

MR: Is there an issue that you would like to talk about or that you would like to use your platform to get a message out?

SV: I would like many young girls in the country to see the chances they have of getting ahead, because they don’t always make the best decisions. They go on other paths and so to let them look at sports as a tool for life, for getting ahead. And also for boys and girls with disabilities to see that there is another possibility in life. That's pretty much it.

MR: Do you have any role models?

SV: Ellie Simmonds, she’s British. She also has a disability and everything, not the same one I have, but she’s very good. And there’s a Colombian Paralympic surfer who inspires me a lot. His name is Freddy Marimón and he’s 14 years old and he’s already an international champion. He inspires me so much!

“I swim because I like it and if I become an example for someone, then great. It’s about doing it the best way possible.”

— Sara Vargas

MR: Does your team have some sort of tradition for good luck?

SV: We are very positive and cheer for each other: “Come on, you can do it!” But we also don't talk much because I start to get distracted. But rituals, no. Also swimming is like an individual sport. Everyone knows who’s going to compete and we wish each other luck.

MR: But even though it’s a very individualistic sport, do you feel that all of you support each other when you go to competitions?

SV: Yes, definitely. We’re a team! We encourage each other. It’s very nice. We have a really good connection and all of us want to always win. We want to be the team who wins the competitions. We all have a winning mindset.

MR: How did COVID-19 and postponing the Paralympics affect you?

SV: Well, COVID-19 affected me because now I’m not going to the pool to train. But the Paralympics getting postponed means that I have another year to train and get better physically and mentally. I can improve my times!

We have edited and condensed this interview for clarity.