Yenigladys Suarez Echevarria

Started: She took up the sport at age 21 in 2010, and began competing a year later. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2022; Paralympic Games YouTube channel, 24 Jul 2020) Reason: She was away from sports for six years following her accident. "After the accident I didn't want to practise any other sport. But I changed my mind when I was rehabilitating in hospital. I first wanted to try table tennis but I couldn't find a coach. But I did find a shooting coach, and that's how I began." (Paralympic Games YouTube channel, 24 Jul 2020; giron.cu, 25 May 2020; cubahora.cu, 28 Aug 2019) Ambition: To win a medal at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (radiorebelde.cu, 08 Feb 2024) Milestones: She became the first shooter representing Cuba, male or female, to claim a gold medal at the Parapan American Games when she won the women's SH1 10m air pistol event at the 2019 Games in Lima, Peru. (SportsDeskOnline, 27 May 2024) Awards: In 2023 she was named among the 10 Outstanding Para Athletes of the Year in Cuba. (trabajadores.cu, 18 Dec 2023) In 2022 she was named Para Sportswoman of the Year in the Cuban province of Matanzas. (Instagram profile, 28 Dec 2022) In 2021 she was named among the Para Athletes of the Year in the Cuban province of Matanzas. (matanceros.gob.cu, 28 Dec 2021)

Sporting Relatives: Her mother Eloina Echevarria represented Cuba in long jump at the 1987 World Championships in Rome, Italy. (SportsDeskOnline, 05 Aug 2020; jit.cu, 01 May 2020)