Donovan Carrillo Makes Mexican History by Reaching Figure Skating Finals at Winter Olympics

2022 Beijing GamesDonovan Carrillo has skated his way into the annals of Mexican sports history…

The 22-year-old Mexican figure skater, the first figure skater to compete at the Winter Olympics in 30 years, has advanced to the free skate after an impressive short program at the 2022 Beijing Games.

Donovan CarrilloHe’s the first Mexican skater to reach the finals, and he’s done so despite never having trained on professional rinks.

His short program on Tuesday set to the songs “Black Magic Woman” and “Shake It” by Santana won him an overall score of 79.69. Towards the end of his performance, Carrillo skated with his hands over his heart.

“This is for my family and all Mexico,” he said.

Donovan CarrilloBorn in Zapopan, Jalisco, Carrillo has said his training has been difficult. His family struggled to pay for his lessons and, at times, to find practice facilities. He’s known for training at a shopping center rink during public sessions.

Mexico hadn’t had a figure skater compete at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Albertville Games when Riccardo Olavarrieta and Diana Encinas fought for gold. On Tuesday, Donovan Carrillo ended the country’s dry spell by competing in the men’s short program in Beijing.

“Many people told me during the beginning of my career that this was a crazy dream,” Carrillo said. “People were always laughing or telling me it wasn’t possible for a Mexican to qualify.”

Carrillo hopes his history-making performance at the Olympics encourages other athletes from Mexico.

“My message to the Mexicans who will be watching me at the Olympic Games through their screens is that no matter the hardships that may present themselves to you, work hard and never give up,” he said in Spanish in the Olympic Channel‘s Winter Tracks video series.

Carrillo is scheduled to compete against 23 other skaters in the free skate program on Thursday.

Victor Santos Among Featured Athletes in Olympic Channel’s Docu-Series “Far From Home”

Victor Santos is Home bound…

Ahead of this week’s start of the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, the Olympic Channel will debut its original documentary series, Far From Home, chronicling the stories behind some of the most unlikely athletes at the Winter Games, including the 20-year-old Brazilian Olympic cross-country skater.

Victor Santos

The six-episode documentary s debuts today on the channel’s digital platform worldwide. Shot over eight months and produced by Boardwalk Pictures, WZRD Media and Madica Productions, it traces a group of athletes facing financial, personal and cultural hurdles as they attempt to qualify.

Each episode follows the incredible journey of an athlete who must balance their personal lives with grueling training regimens and competitions, including Santos and figure skater Julian Yee who will represent Malaysia at its first-ever Olympic Winter Games.

“Every athlete dreams of going to the Olympics, but coming from a tropical country into winter sports, I didn’t even think I would make it,” said Yee who trains inside of a busy shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur. “Knowing that you, as one person, are able to bring a country together is a great feeling.”

Far From Home highlights the incredible efforts and sacrifices that athletes are willing to make to achieve their dream of competing in an Olympic Winter Games,” said Mark Parkman, General Manager of the International Olympic Committee’s global Olympic Channel. “No matter what country you’re from, the passionate stories behind these unlikely winter heroes who are bringing their PyeongChang experiences closer to their home countries, are sure to relate to all audiences.”

The series also features Shiva Keshavan, who is heading to his sixth Olympic Winter Games, and is the first Indian athlete to compete in luge event. Further highlighted are women’s ice hockey player Sojung Shin from Korea; alpine skier Forough Abbasi from Iran; and the first women’s bobsleigh team of Carrie Russell and Jazmine Fenlator from Jamaica. The Jamaican national team having first risen to global fame in its 1988 debut appearance in Calgary, inspiring the 1993 Jon Turtletaub movie Cool Runnings.

The Olympic Channel also said today that it has entered a multi-year agreement with Snap Inc in support of its objective to engage new audiences and younger generations with the Olympic Movement. The deal provides Snap with Olympic Channel original programming for shows on Snapchat’s Discover page, and assets for creative tools. In addition, Snapchat will produce Our Stories featuring archival footage provided by the Olympic Channel team, in collaboration with Olympic rights-holding broadcasters, during PyeongChang 2018.