Meet Lisbeli Vera Andrade, Venezuela’s 19-year-old Paralympic medal hopeful
(Courtesy of the International Paralympic Committee)
The teenage track star discusses preparing for the Tokyo Games and how educators can better support students with disabilities.
When 19-year-old Venezuelan Paralympian Lisbeli Vera Andrade approaches the starting line and gets ready to explode off the starting block, her mind is racing almost as fast as she’s about to run.
“I think about many things in these moments,” Lisbeli says of the seconds before a race begins. “But mainly about my family and how happy I can make them. Secondly, I think about that medal that I can give to my country.”
Lisbeli has brought home several medals for Venezuela since making her international debut at the São Paulo 2017 Youth Parapan American Games. In 2019, she won the Parapan American title in the 400m T47 and silver medals in the 100 metre and 200 metre. She went on to win two bronzes at the Dubai 2019 World Championships.
(Courtesy of Lisbeli Vera Andrade)
This year, Lisbeli is competing on her biggest stage yet: the Tokyo Paralympic Games. “It is something that fills me with so much emotion, knowing that I will be competing at the highest level with athletes from all over the world,” she shares. “For me, it is like touching the sky.”
Although fans across Venezuela will be cheering Lisbeli on in Tokyo, she hasn’t always felt supported by her peers. Born without part of her left arm, Lisbeli faced discrimination in the classroom as a student. “On several occasions during my first years of school my classmates bullied me, and this affected my self-esteem a lot,” she explains. “They treated me as if I could not do what they could do just because they had two arms.”
Lisbeli believes that schools should take several steps to better support students with disabilities and stop this type of discrimination in the classroom. “Firstly, teachers have to educate themselves about disability to be able to transmit values to students. We have to normalize attitudes towards disability so that it doesn’t become the subject of ridicule or curious stares,” she shares. “School is our second home; we spend more time there than at home. Our teachers are the first people who should teach their students that having a disability does not damage the dreams of a person, and that if we work on bullying we can move forward and become a better society that will impact future generations.”
“Firstly, teachers have to educate themselves about disability to be able to transmit values to students. We have to normalize attitudes towards disability so that it doesn’t become the subject of ridicule or curious stares.”
Competing in track has helped Lisbeli rebuild her self-esteem after experiencing bullying as a child. “I have acquired more confidence in myself,” she shares. “Before I was shy about all the trials that I went through. I have become a more positive and optimistic person even when things don't go as planned.”
Running started out as something Lisbeli did for fun. Whether in her house or the park, she loved how free it made her feel. At school she realised that running was something she could do competitively. “I went to all the school athletics games as a spectator and from that moment on I dreamed of running on the track,” she explains. Lisbeli was running in a local street race and by chance, Venezuelan coach Leonel Cabezas saw her compete. Impressed by Lisbeli’s speed and skills, he recommended her to Isidro Barthelemy, coach of the national team, and her career took off from there.
“First of all, I couldn't believe it when they told me,” remembers Lisbeli. “It was a huge opportunity that I could not miss, and thanks to that opportunity I am who I am today. And of course I’m super grateful to Leonel Cabezas, and even more grateful to my beloved coach who is like my second father, Isidro Barthelemy.”
Since then, Lisbeli has travelled around the country and world for her running career. And although she’s set to compete on the biggest stage of her career next month, running still has the same magic as when she first discovered the sport. “When I run, I have so much fun,” Lisbeli shares. “The track is like my second home. I feel free, full and great — it’s something indescribable.”
Read more
