Paula Pareto, in her new role as coach, led the youth team in Brazil

Paula Pareto, in her new role as coach, led the youth team in Brazil

Paula Pareto, Olympic and world judo champion, led the Argentine youth delegation that traveled to Brazil to participate in the Training Camp in São Paulo with judokas from both countries.

Pareto, bronze medalist in Beijing 2008 and gold medalist in Rio 2016, joined Enard’s DAR Program (High Performance Development Program) at the end of 2022 and began working with the young promises of his sport.

Along with coach Oritia González, Paula had her first international experience in her new role. «It was a Camp that added to all the boys from Argentina and Brazil. We did a ‘tournament’ and that is a very important incentive. The boys felt good and I saw them very well. We came back with many things to analyze and improve, but happy,” Pareto explained to the Enard press.

For the twelve Argentine judokas -six women and six men- who trained in the neighboring country thanks to the Enard program, having a national sports reference as a project technician was very valuable. From May 24 to 31, the Brazilian delegation will return the visit for a new international exchange training at Cenard.

«I told the boys to take advantage because maybe for them it is normal, but it is not. Our generation did not have these supports (from Enard). They understood it because they trained in the best way. The idea is that it be the first of many and that will generate very good athletes not only in Judo, but in all disciplines, “explained the 37-year-old Peque.

Pareto, who is also a doctor, added that “you do not mourn leaving the sport as an athlete because you are still on the mat, even if it is on the other side. We are all a team and we are going in the same direction.

«Today I have to take part from another side and the boys pay a lot of attention, they do what one tells them. I feel incorporated into this way of working and I am happy to continue being part of the team ”, she concluded, the Olympic and world champion.

PAULA
Paula Pareto is a renowned Argentine judoka, born in Buenos Aires in 1986. Throughout her career, she has won numerous titles and medals, and is considered one of the most successful judokas in Argentine history.

Pareto began judo at the age of 6, inspired by her father, who was also a judoka. At the age of 16, she made her debut in the Argentine judo team and began to stand out in international competitions. In 2008, she participated in the Beijing Olympic Games, where she won the bronze medal in the under 48 kg category, becoming the first Argentine woman to medal in judo in an Olympic Games.

In the following years, Pareto continued to add victories and titles in international competitions, including gold medals at the Pan American Games and the World Judo Championships. In 2016, she participated in the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games, where she won the gold medal in the under 48 kg category, becoming the first Argentine athlete to win a gold medal in an Olympic Games since 2004.

In addition to her sports career, Pareto is an ophthalmologist and has combined her medical studies and practice with her career as a high-performance judoka. She is considered an example of dedication, effort and perseverance, and has inspired numerous young people to follow her example in sport and in life.