Dario Lencina

Started: He began playing adaptive football at age 19. (ar.radiocut.fm, 13 Apr 2019; Athlete, 01 Apr 2016) Reason: "I was invited to play a match and I enjoyed it." (ar.radiocut.fm, 13 Apr 2019; Athlete, 01 Apr 2016) Ambition: To win a gold medal at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (radiodeportesescobar.com, 02 Oct 2021) Milestones: At the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo he became the first Argentinian Para football-5-a-side player to win four Paralympic medals in the sport. He was also the only Argentinian player to be part of all five of the NPC's Paralympic Games squads from 2004 to 2020. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Jul 2024) Awards: In 2021 he was named Outstanding Neighbour of the municipality of Escobar, Argentina. (escobar.gob.ar, 06 Sep 2023) Additional Info: QUEST FOR GOLD He has won four medals from his five Paralympic appearances between 2004 and 2021, but he is yet to claim the gold medal at the Paralympic Games. He is aiming to compete at the 2024 Games in Paris in the hope of claiming his first Paralympic title. "I cannot say which medal is the best. All of them were beautiful and gave me something. The silver won in Athens [in 2004] was in my first participation and I was a bit unaware of the achievement. I couldn't enjoy the [bronze medal] of 2008 [in Beijing] because I was ill. In 2012 I suffered the loss of my first baby and I had to get off the plane at the last minute, be with my wife and then travel alone. In Rio [bronze medal in 2016] I think we deserved a bit more but as my daughters were in the stands it was fantastic. Due to having my family closer I thought these would be my best Games. The last one [silver in Tokyo] is not far from that because I lost my father five months earlier and I had to overcome that. All the medals obviously have so much value. It's not a common thing to have four of them. I talked with the coach and he wants me to stay. My goal is to be in Paris [in 2024] because I keep on dreaming about the gold medal." (radiodeportesescobar.com, 02 Oct 2021) COACHING He has served as coach of the Argentina women's national Para football 5-a-side team. The team held their first training session in February 2020. "We are looking for players to play on the team who reflect the idea of play we have in mind for the Argentina team. The objective of the first training sessions is to give the opportunity to the girls to show their talent in order to make up a team that represents us at international tournaments." (pasiondeportivabaradero.com, 16 Apr 2020; clarin.com, 28 Feb 2020)