Desiree Vila Bargiela

Started: She took up the sport at age 19 in Madrid, Spain. (Athlete, 06 Nov 2019) Reason: She was encouraged by a friend to begin Para athletics. "When I put on my running prosthetics for the first time the feeling was amazing. It was as if I was getting my life back." (lavanguardia.com, 21 Jun 2019; atlantico.net, 08 May 2018) Ambition: To win a medal at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (Athlete, 26 Aug 2024) Awards: In 2023 she received the Athlete of the Year award from Glamour magazine in Spain. (glamour.es, 30 Oct 2023) In 2022 she received the Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sports Merit in Spain. (as.com, 02 Dec 2022) In 2019 she received the Loitador [Fighter] Award from the Official School of Physiotherapists of Galicia, Spain. (desivila.es, 01 Jun 2019; diariodepontevedra.es, 12 Feb 2019) Additional Info: BOOK In 2018 she published her autobiography titled 'Lo Unico Incurable Son las Ganas de Vivir' [The Only Incurable Thing is the Will to Live]. (olympodeportivo.com, 26 Nov 2019; desivila.es, 15 Nov 2019; Instagram profile, 02 Oct 2019; farodevigo.es, 05 Mar 2018) STUDYING ABROAD She has studied tourism in London, England, and in Malta, through the European Region Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students [ERASMUS] programme. In 2018 she began studying international relations at King Juan Carlos University in Madrid, Spain. (Athlete, 06 Nov 2019; elconfidencial.com, 26 Aug 2018; farodevigo.es, 05 Mar 2018)