Three severe ACL injuries. Consistent departures from the international dream. Redemption. This is how Rebeca Andrade’s trip looked during the majority of her brilliant career. However, the 25-year-old went on to win two medals in her first appearance on the world’s largest stage. At the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games, she won gold in the vault finals and silver in the individual all-around. She became the first Brazilian female gymnast to win a medal in the event.
Since then, she has never looked back. The Eiffel Tower shone above the City of Lights. However, the gymnast shone brighter following her great performance at the Paris Olympics. The Olympian returned home with four more medals as the gymnastics part of the 2024 Paris Games came to a close. This boosted her total to 6, making her the Brazilian with the most medals in history! But another Brazilian appears to have surpassed her at the current Paralympic Games.
Meet Carol Santiago. The Paralympic swimmer previously competed in the 2020 Summer Paralympics, winning five Olympic medals: three golds, one silver, and one bronze. However, the defending champion returned to the Paralympic pool to seek glory once more. On September 2, the 39-year-old won the 50-meter freestyle S13. With an amazing lead, her excellent performance of 26.75 seconds helped her win her sixth Paralympic gold. America’s Gia Pergolini finished in 27.51 seconds. Carlotta Gilli of Italy took third place with 27.60 seconds on the clock.
With this, she becomes Brazil’s most decorated Paralympian. Previously, Rebeca Andrade was the most decorated athlete in the country, with six Olympic medals, but Santiago now leads the way with nine. When asked how she felt about her accomplishment, she kept things simple and sweet. “This [album] means a lot to me. It means that, with all of our dedication, we were able to achieve this level, correct?” Through her endeavour, the 39-year-old intended to inspire others.
These were not the only medals she received in the French capital. Carol Santiago began her 2024 Summer Games campaign with a gleaming Paralympic medal in the women’s 100m backstroke S12. Her impressive time of 1:08.23 was far ahead of her competition. On September 4, she won her eighth Paralympic medal in the 100m freestyle S12, clocking 59.30 seconds. The Brazilian also won her ninth Paralympic medal, a silver in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay VI. The quartet trailed Ukraine, who took gold in 3:53:84.
However, Santiago and his team had to settle for second place on the podium in 3:56:94. But she’s not done yet. She will return to the Paralympic pool one last time for the Women’s 100m breaststroke SB12 event. Will she be able to defend her Paralympic crown and win another gold? We’ll soon find out.
In 2015, the 25-year-old suffered her first serious ACL damage. Not only did she miss the World Championships that year, but it also had a significant psychological and physical impact on her. “I was traumatised; I couldn’t talk about the injury. When Aline brought up the subject, I shifted the topic.” But she rediscovered her strength and worked hard to recover until another injury became a thorn in her side. The gymnast suffered two further ACL injuries between 2017 and 2019.
Operations and rehabilitation became the norm for a while. However, that was not the only concern. Growing up in a family of eight was equally difficult. “The most challenging element was the money aspect.” Some days, she had to trek two hours to the local gym with her brothers. Neither of these things could stop Rebeca Andrade.
On September 3, Brazilian singer IZA shared a photo of her belly on Instagram, titled “33 weeks and counting…” Andrade also added his congratulations to the list of messages. She kept her message brief, using a few adoring eye emojis. Even though the gymnast no longer has the most medals in the country, she has come a long way, and supporters can’t wait to see her compete again.
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