Is it possible? 6 medals are forecasted for Mexico.

As is customary, the prestigious magazine Sports Illustrated has given its medal predictions for each delegation, and in this case, the projection for Mexican athletes was 6 medals: 2 gold, 1 silver, and 3 bronze.

At first glance, and considering that the United States ended with 113 medals in Tokyo 2020, this figure might seem insignificant, but the reality is that the gap between the Americans and us is basically that big.

China won 89, Korea 71, Great Britain 64, Japan 58, and so on with countries that averaged a good number of achievements in the last Olympic Games.

It is a reality that Mexican sports are far from those numbers, but perhaps not as far as demonstrated in the last Olympic Games, where they only returned home with 4 medals, all of which were bronze. Why emphasize the type of medal? Because this determines the final position you occupy in the medal table, and although it might seem illogical, 1 gold medal has more value than any number of silvers or bronzes. For example, Bermuda won 1 gold in Japan and appears several ranks above Mexico in the medal table.

That said, the aforementioned prediction becomes a real challenge for our country’s athletes to meet. However, the possibility exists, and we will go one by one with the athletes who were considered favorites so you can get to know them in depth.

Alejandra Valencia: Born in Hermosillo, Sonora. A sports enthusiast from a very young age, Ale practiced athletics, swimming, and cycling. But it wasn’t until she picked up a bow for the first time that her talent made it clear she was born for this discipline.

With 3 Olympic Games under her belt and a bronze medal won in Tokyo, the Mexican archer will seek to climb the podium again in what will be her 4th Olympics (London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020, Paris 2024). Additionally, her record includes 3 Pan American golds and a silver at the 2023 Berlin World Championship; the magazine predicted that Valencia has a chance to win gold.

Carlos Sansores: Born in Cancún, Quintana Roo, the Mexican taekwondo practitioner began his career in the sport with the sole intention of losing weight and improving his health. At that time, one of our country’s top figures, María del Rosario Espinoza, won gold at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. From that moment, Taekwondo caught his attention, and today he is about to compete in his second Olympic Games.

He won three medals between 2019 and 2023 at the World Championships (two silver and one gold). Additionally, he has a bronze and a gold from the Pan American Games.

Osmar Olvera: Born in Mexico City, Osmar will arrive strengthened for his second Olympic Games. In his first participation, the Mexican diver was the youngest representative of the delegation and managed to reach the semifinals.

Since that year, Osmar has climbed to the podium in almost all his competitions, with his best performance being the recent Pan American Games, where he dominated all the events he participated in and returned to our country with 3 gold medals.

Emiliano Hernández: In this case, besides being one of the favorites, he is also one of the flag bearers for the Mexican delegation. Emiliano will carry our country’s flag during the opening ceremony. What better example than having an Olympic medalist in your family, and in this case, it’s his older brother. Ismael Hernández is the first and only Mexican pentathlete to win a medal at the Olympics, and now it’s the younger Hernández’s turn.

One of his recent performances was at the 2023 World Championship in his specialty, where he achieved second place, so hopes of achieving something similar in Paris 2024 are not far off.

Daniela Souza: Born in Baja California. At 24 years old, she is ready for her first Olympic experience. What started as a hobby at the age of 10 has become her daily job and now her biggest dream. Her recent record is filled with gold medals. Since 2019, whenever Daniela has delivered a strong performance, the result has been a gold medal. She has 2 golds from the Central American Games, 2 from the Pan American Games, and 1 from the World Championship. Better numbers or the same?

Marco Verde: Son of the Olympic boxer Manuel Verde, who competed in Barcelona 1992, Marco aims to continue the family legacy and achieve a strong performance in his first Olympic Games. Inside the ring, Marco is better known as “Green,” and at 22 years old, he is still considered a promising figure in Mexican boxing.

Paris 2024 could be the big stage for Marco to make that leap in his career and show that he is ready to reach the next level. His qualification came after winning the gold medal at the 2023 Pan American Games.

At 6 years old, his father tried to get him into baseball, but blood calls, and it was impossible for the young boxer to stay away from the ring where his father shined.

Paris 2024 is about to begin, and hopefully, the predictions by Sports Illustrated will prove to be conservative. The outlook is positive, and unlike recent editions, the results for Mexican athletes might bring us good news.

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