Did you know…
Like Un Yong Kim (South Korea), Sheik Fahad Al-Sabah (Kuwait) and Joao Havelange (Brazil), José Gamarra Zorrilla was one of the best Olympic leaders in the Third World. He played an important role in promoting the values of sport in Bolivia and Latin America. José dedicated his life to fighting against indifference to sports and the deplorable condition of athletes in Bolivia. His country is one of the poorest countries in the Third World. In addition, Bolivia has had a record 194 coup attempts. However, under his leadership several international congresses and events were organized in La Paz, Cochabamba, Oruro and Santa Cruz de la Sierra. José was president of the Organizing Committee of the Bolivarian Games in La Paz (1977) and the South American Games in Bolivia (1978). As president of the Bolivian Olympic Committee (1970-1982), he led Bolivia to the best result in its history: 106 medals at the South American Games. He led the Bolivian delegation to the Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany. José Gamarra Zorrilla is considered by many South Americans to be the greatest South American Olympic leader of the 20th century.
This country had great athletes: Mario Martinez (tennis), Alan Saunders (Nordic skiing), Milton Coimbra (soccer), Maria Ortuno (basketball), Giovanna Morejon Irusta (athletics), Ramiro Benavides (tennis), Anthony Iglesias (nails), Johnny Pérez (athletics), Scott Sanchez Saunders (Nordic skiing), Oswaldo Morejon (athletics), William Arencibia (taekwondo), Erwin Sánchez (soccer), Ricardo Ramos (Nordic skiing), Guadalupe Yañez (basketball), Betty Saavedra (basketball) , Juan Rodrigo Camacho (athletics), Marco Etcheverry (soccer), Katherine Moreno (swimming), Roberto Nielsen Reyes (horse riding) and Billy Farwing Aranoa (Nordic skiing).
Bolivia sent 7 athletes to the 1988 Winter Olympics. The South American skiers were Manuel Aramayo, Guillermo Avila Paz, Jaime Bascon, Jorge Bejarano, Enrique Montaño, Pedro Tichaver and Luis Vizcarra.
Julia Iriarte is the greatest Bolivian athlete of all time. Why? She won 5 gold and 3 silver medals at the 1947 Bolivarian Games in Lima, Peru. She became the star of the Games. Her gold medals were in the 80 meter hurdles, discus throw, shot put, long jump and high jump. Her return to her house was a great success. She was later invited by President Enrique Hertzog to the Government Palace (Palacio Quemado). She also won five gold medals at the South American Athletics Championships in La Paz in 1948. With her coach, George Voeg, she broke several national records during the 1940s. Unfortunately, she did not compete in the 1948 Olympics in Helsinki. (Finland). She was born in Cochabamba, Bolivia on December 20, 1919 to Plácido Iriarte and Clara Velasco.
Bolivia participated in 1979 in the Spartakiade of the Nations of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
From 1980 to 1984, the Bolivian government destroyed the sport. South American athletes were not allowed to compete in the 1980 Olympics. Many athletes who had trained for years for the Games felt great frustration. Among these athletes were: Johnny Pérez (athletics), Luis Darío Vásquez (fencing), Mary Rojas (athletics), Walter Quiroga (shooting), Linda Spents (athletics), Isidro Guarachi (boxing), Walter Quispe (boxing), Edgar Cueto (cycling), Jean Young Kim Song (judo) and Antonieta Arizaga (swimming). Ironically, the USSR – host nation of the Olympic Games – subsidized Olympic teams from the Third World (Tanzania – one of the poorest countries in Africa – sent 41 athletes). For political reasons, Bolivia also did not participate in the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas (Venezuela). For the first time since 1971, athletes from Bolivia did not participate in a Pan American. Unlike athletes from Haiti, Nicaragua, Chad and Sierra Leone, Bolivian athletes had trouble going to the 1984 Olympics.
Johnny Pérez participated in the 1978 South American Games in La Paz, Bolivia, winning three gold medals in athletics, in the 1,500m, 5,000m and 3,000m hurdles.
The Olympic Stadium in La Paz is one of the most modern in Latin America and the Caribbean. Among the athletes who have competed in the Olympic Stadium are Romario de Souza Faria (football/Brazil), Joao Carlos de Oliveira (athletics/Brazil), José Luis Chilavert (football/Paraguay), Tito Stenier (athletics/Argentina), Edith Noeding (athletics/ Peru) and Carlos Caetano Bledron Verri (soccer/ Brazil).
Giovanna Morejon Irusta finished 16th in the 20 kilometer walk at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics in Paris, France.
Katherine Moreno was one of the youngest swimmers at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul.
The Bolivian team won the silver medal at the South American Basketball Championship and qualified for the Women’s Basketball World Championship in 1978 in Seoul (South Korea). Bolivia qualified for a world tournament for the first time. The heroines were: Janeth Blanco Saavedra, Betty Saavedra Zaconeta, Daysy Chucatini Torrico, Liceo Rojas Arteaga, Norma Zambrano Siles, Elizabeth Navia Ledesma, Guadalupe Yañez Heredia, Tania Claros Vargas, Antonieta Gudmanson Torres, Judith Quiñones Miranda and Vania Claros de Justinino.
Bolivia sent only one athlete (Fernando Inchauste Montalvo/ kayak) to the Summer Olympics in 1960.
From 1971 to 1979, 500 Bolivian athletes participated in international tournaments and competitions.
Like Hortencia María de Fátima Marcari (Brazil) and Carol Turney (Canada), Guadalupe Yáñez was one of the best basketball players at the 1979 Pan American Games in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Erwin Sánchez was one of the most important soccer players in Bolivia in the 1990s.
From 1975 to 1977, more than 25 foreign coaches collaborated in the preparation of Bolivian athletes for international competitions (Olympic Games, Bolivarian Games, Pan American Games and South American Games). The coaches were: Bornj Wangemann (athletics/ West Germany), Mike Lucero (basketball/ USA), Paul Gonzalez (basketball/ USA), Stanislav Golubkov (boxing/ USSR), Heriberto Diaz (cycling/ Mexico), Pedro Escobar (equestrian/ Chile), Stanislav Spyra (fencing/Poland), Walter Madel (fencing/West Germany), Eduardo Virba (soccer/West Germany), Dale Cutler (gymnastics/USA), Donald Howorth (gymnastics/USA) , Pedro Ortega (gymnastics/ Mexico), Jasuhido Takasuka (judo/ Japan), Benigno Marquez (wrestling/ Venezuela), Karol Czarkoswki (weightlifting/ Poland), Wu Yu Yung (swimming/ Taiwan), Yadwiga Czarkoswka (swimming/ Poland), Adolfo Coronado (swimming/ Ecuador), Francis Conway (shooting/ USA), Nicolay Durnev (shooting/ USSR), Cselaw Gajdamovicz (volleyball/ Poland), Tien Heing Hisch (volleyball/ China), Chiu Chiao Chi (volleyball/ Taiwan) and Lin Chou Nou (volleyball/ China).
