13 March 2008 - Juan Rene SERRANO (MEX): “I dream of making history for my country!”

Juan Rene SERRANO (MEX): “I dream of making history for my country!” January 2008  I was born in Guadalajara Jalisco Mexico and I live in a village next to that city. I am in my fifth semester of Industrial Design at Valle de Mexico University. I started shooting archery when I was 14, because of my father, who used to shoot some archery. One year later, I was in the national selection and started to compete internationally; I have been in the national selection from that year until today. My first coach was Jose Ruben Almanzor who has been running the national selection for more than 15 years.   To talk a bit more about me, I love sports a lot, and partying too. I always try to do things well, and improve all the time. I am quite quick-tempered and explosive, but I try to keep calm. I have an elder sister and a younger brother in addition to my parents. Lately, I have been dedicated to archery full-time. I also like video games, swimming and coffee.  Last season, the most important moments during the qualifications for Dubai were at the Stage 3 Antalya, when I won the bronze final. I am sure no one was expecting me to win and it gave me the vision that I could reach the Final. After that, the Stage 4 in Dover was very hard for me. First, I had flown from Brazil to England the same day as the official practice. Then, I did not receive my archery equipment which was stuck in customs. I still did not have my equipment a few hours before the qualifications, which frightened me a lot. Fortunately, after waiting several hours in the airport, I finally got my equipment just in time. During eliminations, I shot two very difficult and close matches, that were key to reaching the qualification for the Final. After having qualified for the Final and having met my expectations and predictions, I went home very happy!   In Dubai, for the Final, I had a great time and I was proud of my 2nd place finish! I gained a lot of maturity in the World Cup competition, in addition to the great satisfaction of having achieved something that has never been achieved in my country: a podium at a world-level competition for a recurve archer. I also feel that, through this event, people got to know me and I am now recognized in the archery world. I hope I will be able to do it again next season.   My expectations in 2008 are to reach the Olympics with all the best preparation and to take advantage of all I learned in 2007. My dream is to make history for my country and for my people, to enjoy the competitions and to compete with all my heart.   Juan Rene Serrano