At 13 years old, the 3 youngest athletes in Santiago show that age is just a number

Josselyn Miranda, Chloe Cederholm and Micaela Apaestegui are the youngest competitors among almost 2,000 that came to battle in Santiago 2023 for improvement of personal times and marks, medals and even slots to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

Not even one month ago, their birthdays only counted to 12. They became one year older this month of November, reaching the important 13-year-old milestone. They went from being three girls, to becoming three teenagers. But not just that happened recently in their lives. Now, they are also Parapan American athletes too.

“This has been an incredible experience. I feel like I have grown as a person and as an athlete (…). It was incredible to play in the El Salvador national team in the Games, the biggest ones of our region”, said Miranda, the youngest one of all. The Salvadoran was born on 18 November 2010.

The Para table tennis player even had her birthday celebration in the Athlete’s Village, two days after she faced the Parapan American champion and Paralympian, Tamara Leonelli (Chile), in a match within the C5 class. What a gift.

“My birthday was incredible. I got a lot of presents that I can take back home. People sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to me and everybody hugged me. Everybody has been taking really good care of me here (in Santiago 2023)”, she shared.

But even though she has been under the protective wings of all her country’s athletes, she still has her mother on permanent watch. “I call my family daily and we always speak like two hours. My mom is always asking if I am eating well, if I like the food here, if it is cold, if I am wearing a jacket. My family is really supportive”, Miranda added.  

The Para table tennis player had three matches where she had three losses, which translated to being eliminated in the group stage. Nevertheless, she said the results are 100% positive for her career.

“I saw in my rivals a lot of attitude, energy, and motivation. I am taking home a lot of experience, this is the first time I play with people at this level, so I hope that all this can help me beat them in the future, because I want to keep growing and representing my country internationally”, she said.

The Salvadoran lost mobility of her lower limbs when she was about one year-old due to a congenital disease and started playing Para table tennis six years ago. Her greatest achievement so far was a silver medal in the Youth Parapan American Games in Bogota, Colombia, in June 2023.

Talent and big dreams

Next up in the list is Cederholm, from the United States. She is just ten days older than Miranda.

“I would not change anything about being the youngest in the US team. I got to come here and see how the older athletes do what they do, and it inspires me. They have helped me so much and I would love to do this in the future, help another 13-year-old improve. Every Para athlete in this Games has a purpose  and it is amazing to connect so easily because of that”, said the extremely well-spoken American.  

“It is really cool to see how other people deal with their own disabilities. It is so inspirational to be here, I have talked to so many people that I have never met before and learning what they go through, truly inspires me, it is powerful”, she expressed.  

However, she definitely has power of her own, because the young Para Swimmer even grab a bronze medal in the women’s 200m Individual medley in SM10, which states how bright her future is in the sport. Her talent and potential are big time. Her dreams too.

“One of my goals was to drop my times and I reached that (…). But now, my biggest goal is going to Paris 2024, which I know sounds crazy, but nobody can say is impossible. Maybe it might not work, but the act of trying is always possible”, she added.

When Cederholm was five years old, she was diagnosed with McCune-Albright syndrome, which produces fragility in her bones, and was recommended to avoid jumping and running to protect her legs. Therefore, she found a safehaven in swimming.

“I got nationally classified (evaluation on which class the athlete will compete according to the disability) when I was 10 years old, because I was doing meets (competitions) regularly. Shortly after I got an email saying that I was being considered for the 2023 Parapan American Games”, she explained.

“The emails continued coming from time to time stating that the list was getting smaller and I was still in there, until one day I got one saying that I had the spot on the roster pending that I get internationally classified. So I did, in a meet in Mexico, in September 2023. When it was official that I was coming to Santiago, it was really exciting. I can’t even explain it”, she added.

In the Parapan American Games, Cederholm also competed in 400m freestyle in SM10, where she ended fifth and will have another go on the Centro Acuatico’s pool, on 24 November, for the 100m backstroke final.

More young blood in the water 

Fellow Para swimmer Micaela Apaestegui was born on 5 November 2010, which makes her the final link of the youngest trio of Santiago 2023.  

The Peruvian got her first taste of the Parapan American Games this 22 November, during the 400m freestyle event, in the S9 class. She got to the finals and finished in fifth place, ahead of many other experienced Para swimmers.

Now, she will have a straight up opportunity for medals the upcoming days, with the finals of the 100m backstroke and the 100m breaststroke. She will close her experience in Santiago in the 100m freestyle, which will have qualifying heats.

As it happened with Miranda, she was noticed as a special talent in the Parapan American Youth Games in Bogota, Colombia, where she won a silver medal.

According to the entry list, there were other five 13-year-old athletes in Santiago 2023, but they were born before the month of November.

On the other side of the spectrum, there is Para table tennis veteran Stephanie Chan, from Canada, who participated in her fifth Parapan American Games this 2023, with 66 years of age. During those competitions she won six medals, including a gold in Toronto 2015 and the most recent one, a bronze in Santiago 2023.  She is a Paralympian from 2016.