Meet our Lima 2019
Ambassadors
PRESENTATION
Learn more about the selection process, profile, categories and commitment of all of those taking part in the Ambassadors Program, an initiative of the Lima 2019 Pan American and Parapan American Games Organizing Committee (COPAL).
Discover the important role fulfilled by each ambassador. They are renowned people in various fields who seek to identify with each spectator.
Join us to transform Peru into a country based in sports values to make this sports celebration a worldwide historic event.
PROFILE
Lima 2019 Ambassadors are selected according to the following criteria:
-Be an athlete or Para athlete with success, merits or sports achievements at national or international level or who has stood out in a sports discipline.
-Be an athlete or Para athlete aiming to win medals.
-Be a recognized person who has a good reputation and empathy with citizens and who contributes to promote sports values.
-Be a leader with social sensitivity and availability to promote the Lima 2019 activities.
CATEGORIES
-Medalist Ambassadors
Meet all the athletes and Para athletes who won medals along their sports career.
-Legendary Ambassadors
Meet the athletes and Para athletes who received a well-deserved recognition due to their sports career.
-Honorary Ambassadors
This category recognizes noted celebrities (actors, chefs, writers or singers) who have the best reputation and the gift of leadership.
COMMITMENTS
-Promote sports values (Olympic and Paralympic) inside and outside their professional development area.
-Participate in the Lima 2019 activities.
-Visit schools in the 14 districts that will house the Lima 2019 Games.
-Mention their status as Lima 2019 Ambassador in interviews or reports to the media.
-Share all communication about the Lima 2019 Games at least once a week on their social networks.
-Write and/or comment about the importance of the Lima 2019 Games legacy.
-Share photos or videos about the sport or discipline they practice during the Lima 2019 Games (before, during and after the Games).
Medalist Ambassador Alexandra Grande is the main karateka in kumite in Peru. Grande has received the Peruvian Sports Laurels in the Grand Cross mention, in recognition of the gold medal she won at the World Games.
She also claimed the gold medal in the last edition of the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games and placed 7th in the world kumite ranking. She is one of the candidates to win and take the 1st place at the Lima 2019 Games.
The Medalist Ambassador Analí Gómez claimed the title in the women’s category at the ISA World Surfing Games, held in Peru in 2014.
Gómez was also the first surfer to win three times the South America Championship in the history of the World Surf League (WSL) and she is training to be a part of the Peruvian team in the Lima 2019 Pan American Games
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Alejandra Callirgos is a member of the Peruvian wheelchair basketball team, where she stands out for her youth, strength and dedication in each of the trainings and matches.
Callirgos is training to overcome the team’s performance at the Toronto 2015 Parapan American Games, where they came in fourth place.
The Medalist Ambassador Andy Martínez became the fastest man in Peru after breaking the 100-meter national record. He achieved what nobody else could in 37 years: he won the gold medal by clicking 10.3 at the 2014 Ibero-American Athletics Championships, in Sao Paulo, only 13 hundredths less than Fernando Acevedo in 1977.
Martínez, who was born on September 28, 1993, won two gold medals in the Montevideo 2017 Grand Prix held in Uruguay in the 100 m (10s48h) and 200 m (21s01h) free style. This way he became the ideal candidate to win the gold at the Lima 2019 Pan American and Parapan American Games.
The Medalist Ambassador Diego Elías is the current Pan American squash champion. At the Pan American Squash Championships, he won all sets of the five matches before climbing the podium.
Diego is considered the best youth athlete in the world. At the Lima 2019 Games, he hopes to overcome the silver medal he collected at Toronto 2015 and the bronze medal obtained in doubles.
Dunia Felices was appointed as Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador because she is the best example of a hard-working athlete. She never gave up and has achieved all her objectives since the beginning of her sports career.
The Peruvian Para swimmer won the silver medal on August 2017 at the Medellin Para Swimming Open in Colombia. Dunia, who was born in Sarhua, Ayacucho, clocked a time of 1 minute 44 seconds and 39 hundredths in the 50-meter butterfly event.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Israel Hilario has claimed two world Para-cycling titles in the C-2 category. His priority is to win the gold medal at the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games with the support of his people.
Israel obtained the bronze medal at the 2017 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships held in South Africa and ranked sixth at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Benoit Clemente is one of the most important Peruvian surfing representatives in longboard.
He claimed two world titles in 2013 and 2015 and has proven his great skills in this sport. Clemente won the 2013 ISA World Longboard Championship in China, as well as the gold medal at the 2013 Bolivarian Games, held in Peru.
The Medalist Ambassador Efraín Sotacuro is an outstanding Peruvian Para athlete who was born in Huancavelica. He trains every day at the IPD High Performance Center in Huancayo. There, he prepares very hard to represent our country in the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games.
Among his main achievements, he obtained the fourth place in marathon at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and the London 2017 World Para Athletics Championships, in England.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador, Pilar Jáuregui, is the current Pan American Para badminton champion. She claimed this title in 2016. She is a member of the Peruvian national team that is training to win medals at the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games.
One of our Ambassador’s greatest achievements was the gold medal she won at the Brazil Para-Badminton International 2017. She also stood out at the 2017 BWF Para-Badminton World Championships in Korea.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Pedro Pablo de Vinatea is one of those athletes who never give up. Badminton is his passion and in despite of not having one of his lower extremities, he continued pursuing his dream to become a great athlete.
After a year of hard training, he won the gold medal at the 2014 II Athletics & Swimming Open Championship held in Medellin in 2014 (Colombia). De Vinatea is an example of a hard-working athlete.
The Legendary Ambassador Percy Rojas is a former Peruvian football player, who became a legend due to his technique and speed.
1975 was a key year for his sport career because he won the Copa Libertadores and the Copa América, and he became the best goal scorer in the oldest football tournament in the world.
His sports career dates back to the 70’s. He played in many clubs such as Universitario de Deportes, Sporting Cristal and Independiente de Avellaneda, and made it to the second round at the 1978 FIFA World Cup.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Ariana Orrego was the first Peruvian gymnast to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Her outstanding performance made her the best gymnast in Peru.
Due to her hard work, in 2013, Ariana became the third best youth gymnast in South America.
The Honorary Ambassador Nicolas Fuchs is one of the most important race drivers in Peru. He won the ninth edition of the 2009 Caminos del Inca Rally in the N4 category. He also claimed five national titles consecutively between 2007 and 2011 proving his skills in many competitions.
Also, Fuchs won the Serdegna, Acropolis, Argentina, Portugal and Mexico Rallies participating in the Production WRC2 category. He is the first Peruvian to claim these titles.
The Honorary Ambassador Gina Parker is a recognized Peruvian radio announcer and one of the main promoters of sports for people with an impairment. She is aware of the importance of the Lima 2019 Pan American and Parapan American Games for all Peruvians.
Parker stands out for her ability as radio announcer to convey emotions through the microphone and despite using a wheelchair, she never got discouraged by anything or anyone and made her dreams come true.
The Medalist Ambassador María de Jesús Trujillo was born in a city located on the northern coast of Peru which happens to be named exactly as her last name. She started swimming in a local academy for health reasons, but in a short time it became a competitive event for her.
She stood out in Peruvian Para swimming tournaments and became a member of the Peruvian delegation that participated in the Sao Paulo 2017 Youth Parapan American Games, where she won a silver medal for Peru.
Born in Chiclayo, the Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Luis Sandoval is an outstanding Para athlete who competes in 1500 and 5000 meters in the category for people with a visual impairment.
Sandoval participated in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, giving a great performance in 1500 meters with the well-known athlete John Cusi. Currently, Sandoval is a member of the athletics group that trains at the Cusco High Performance Center.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador María Alejandra De Osma is considered one of the best water skiers in Peru. She is a member of the Top Peru 2019 group of the Peruvian Institute of Sports, which includes the best athletes of the country.
She is also a strong candidate to win medals at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games to start on July 26 in Lima.
Perseverance, dedication and strength are the main characteristics accompanying her since she started practicing water ski. At the age of two, she started practicing water ski thanks to her mother, who encouraged her to enter the water at the Bujama Beach in Cañete, Lima.
The Medalist Ambassador Thalía Mallqui has been practicing wrestling since she was 17. She is considered one of the best Peruvian wrestlers and a strong contender in each competition she participates.
Our Ambassador won the silver medal at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Marcela Castillo is considered the best taekwondo athlete in Latin America, after winning the silver medal in the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships in 2017.
Castillo Tokumori practices taekwondo since she was 5 years old and has proved to be a strong contender in each competition she attends. An example of her power is the gold medal she collected at the 2013 Bolivarian Games.
Peruvian rider Alonso Valdez Prado, was also appointed as a Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador. Throughout his career, we can distinguish three stages.
The first stage was when he became three-time children champion (1990, 1991 and 1992) and youth champion (2001 - 2002 - 2003) during three consecutive years.
In the second stage, he met success again and reconnected with sports in 2012 by participating in many competitions around the world. Valdez classified to the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France; the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada, where he had an outstanding performance that allowed him to qualify to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil.
The Lima 2019 Medalist Ambassador Sofía Mulanovich was born in Punta Hermosa, Lima. She is the first Peruvian and South American to claim the ISA World Surfing Championship title in 2004.
This achievement gave her the opportunity to obtain the Peruvian Sports Laurels in the Grand Cross mention, the highest Peruvian sports award.
Sofía is also known as “The Queen”. She aims to win the gold medal at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games.
The Legendary Ambassador Hector Chumpitaz, known as the “Captain of the Americas” is a former Peruvian football player, who played in the defense position. He was a member of the national team that won the 1975 Copa América.
Also, as part of the Peruvian football team, Chumpitaz participated in the Mexico 1970 and Argentina 1978 FIFA World Cups. He played in many clubs such as Deportivo Municipal, Universitario de Deportes, Atlas de Guadalajara and Sporting Cristal.
The Lima 2019 Honorary Ambassador Jorge Arriola is also known as “El chupo”. He is a Peruvian PR professional and a sports lover. He has participated in eleven football World Cups and eight Olympic Games.
At the Russia World Cup, he did not only wear the Peruvian flag as usual, but he also wore his Lima 2019 Ambassador uniform in the stadiums where the Peruvian team played.