In her days as an active competitor, Ana Irene Delgado wielded a sword and led her horse with gusto, looking optimistically into the future.

Today, already turned into a fencer and deputy substitute for the 8-4 circuit, his youthful aspirations have not changed.

The young lawyer and athlete recently achieved an important victory for Panamanian sport, especially fencing, by being placed on the executive committee of the International Fencing Federation (FIE), becoming the only Latin American representative on the sport’s highest decision-making body in the world.

“It was not an easy choice,” admits Delgado, basing his campaign on the slogan “inclusive fencing for developing countries”, a formula that won him the support of 96 of the 155 national fencing federations around the world.

Young deputies and athletes are grateful for the support he has received from Panama by the president of the National Fencing Association, Sol Ameglio de Dorati, along with the president, coaches and athletes of the fencing clubs Las Margarita (Chepo), La Chorrera, Coclé, Balboa Fencing Club and Cyrano Club. , in the capital city.

“For this election, 35 candidates for the FIE executive committee were proposed, and 15 members had to be selected. The work and proposals that we carried out convinced the delegates and it was possible to gain the trust of representatives from other continents, from sports careers and Olympic leadership ”, Delgado pointed out.

Later, in the first meeting of the executive committee, Delgado was nominated by representatives of Egypt to occupy the vice president of the International Fencing Federation, achieving a position with 16 votes in his favor, surpassing representatives of this sporting power such as Italy. , France and others from the European bloc, and the United States.

Important appointment

Despite her youth, Ana Irene Delgado presents a brilliant resume, which includes the honor of being Panama’s youngest ambassador to the UK; He was elected in 2019 as understudy for the 8-4 circuit, and in his sporting career there were important victories for Panama, both in horseback riding and fencing.

“Winning the FIE vice president is a great opportunity to project Panama and its fencing on an international level. What we want is to strengthen, through this position, sport in Panama and in Latin America,” he said.

Better days for sports

Ana Irene Delgado is very enthusiastic and loves sports, especially fencing. “I am not new to the sport, not only as an athlete but as a person who has helped selflessly, and I believe that what we have today is the result of all these efforts,” he stressed.

The effort, however, had a few setbacks along the way, with the initiative aiming to better support investment in sport.

“I feel a little disappointed with the position of several deputies and the Ministry of Economy and Finance who have not wanted to debate the project I presented, which seeks to create incentives for investment in sports, and which is currently stagnant. . Panama does not have a high-performance center or a high-level conditioning center. Private companies have no incentive to invest in sports”, Delgado said.

As for the management being carried out to establish a “general sports law”, the former athlete and his deputy are of the opinion that if this initiative is solely aimed at creating a Ministry of Sports, it does not seem like a convenient option.

“If this leads to the conversion of Pandeportes into the Ministry of Sport, without plans, projects or infrastructure for the development of sports and athletes, this will not work; We must encourage investment in sports, because this is a matter for the state, public health, and people’s welfare,” he said.