Personal Statement
I am a 6 ft 3 in 170 lbs, outside hitter from Bucaramanga Colombia. I have played club and state volleyball for almost ten years and have had the pleasure of constantly being exposed to a higher level of competition playing with older athletes since 2018 when I was selected to be part of my state team at the National level and I have represented my department in U17-U19-U21-U23 and open. I was selected at 16 years old to represent my country in the 2022 Brazil U19 World Cup qualifier in which we won a Bronze medal and achieved qualification. I learned that to gain time on the court, I had to be the athlete who worked the hardest in the gym. I have tried to lead by example and always want my coaches and teammates to consider me respectful. I constantly strive to learn from my mistakes, be coachable, and be the best teammate I can be. Currently, I am a starter on the Santander State team in the youth category under the direction of coach Ramiro Lovera. I am very excited to train with Coach Lovera and have included his contact information below for his reference.
I have always been a starter on the team in my category and I have represented the state at the national level. Two years ago we won the Gold Medal, in the largest club tournament that Colombia has, the Colanta Volleyball Cup. We also won a Silver medal in the Volleyball Nationals organized by the National Volleyball Federation of Colombia (fedevolei). I have also been playing with my team as a starter in U19 and U21 categories and we have obtained fourth place in both categories. I have loved learning to act under pressure and the experience in general.
I have included contact information for the president of the Santandereana Volleyball League for your reference. I encourage you to contact him.
In addition to playing volleyball in the state, I have been fortunate to attend San Pedro Claver School and play under the direction of coach Jacqueline Paredes. Coach Jacqueline Paredes' teams have won more than 6 championships in my state, and I have been part of all the Gold and Silver medals since I started my high school, being the captain of my school's team since 2018. Under the direction of Coach Paredes I have been the team's starting attacker during my entire high school seasons. As a sophomore, I had the honor of being selected for the National Intercollegiate Games Finals. Our team finished fourth in the National Final. In senior year, I was the team leader in kills and was again selected for the Final Phase of the National Intercollegiate Games. This final phase is still in process. Furthermore, for the first time in history I have been the only volleyball player from my school and from my state selected by the National Volleyball Federation at the age of 16 to represent Colombia in a U19 World Cup qualifier. I invite you to contact my coach Jaqcueline Paredes for a reference.
I feel that an important advantage of living in Bucaramanga and having a warm climate and conducive conditions is playing beach volleyball all year round. I have found that my time at the beach, in addition to being fun, has helped me in almost every aspect of my indoor game, from on-court communication with my teammates to speed and jumping. I was selected to represent my state by the Santandereana Volleyball League in the beach discipline. I also had the opportunity to participate in the National U19 beach volleyball championship organized by the National Volleyball Federation in which I won a Gold medal last year.
When I'm not in the volleyball gym or on the beach, I usually study. San Pedro Claver is well known in Santander as a rigorous educational institution with high standards of academic quality and university preparation. I have been a student at San Pedro Claver my entire life and balancing academics with other activities has taught me the importance of being organized and having good time management skills. Ultimately, I know I want to be a great Engineer and I can see myself getting an undergraduate degree. I enjoy mathematics and science, I have always competed in the Regional Mathematics Olympiads organized by the Industrial University of Santander, standing out at the top of the podium and last year I obtained a Gold medal and this year I hope to represent my Country. I also enjoy I love Robotics and programming and I have been part of the San Pedro Robotics team since elementary school. I have won the National Robotics championship twice and in 2022 I represented Colombia at the VEX Robotics World Cup in Dallas, Texas. I am also passionate about Chemistry and I have been a finalist in the National Phase of the University of Antioquia of the National Chemistry Olympics in 2023. I am currently continuing to study English to perfect it as a second language.
In addition to being an excellent athletic and academic school, San Pedro Claver is known for having an active community service program. Through this program, I have been involved in multiple projects, including FAS Social Action Training. Through this program, I have spent several hours over the last few years accompanying and feeding neglected populations, grandparents, displaced people, and children in poverty in Bucaramanga. From this experience I have learned to appreciate the wonderful life I have and how extremely lucky I am. Community service really helps me put my life into proper perspective and keeps me grounded.
Having in mind to help my community, I founded "Calzando Futuros", an organization dedicated to supporting low-income athletes through the organization of sports tournaments for charitable purposes
For this reason, I want to invite you to review my videos because I am sure that I will be a great asset for your team and together we will reap successes and triumphs.
