Nicolás Quintero achieved a historic and unforgettable result at the Winter Youth Olympic Games

THE Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games They will forever remain etched in the memory of Nicolas Quintero. The 17-year-old from Neuquén, who a few days ago was the flag-bearer of the national delegation at the opening ceremony, debuted with a great performance at the event in the South Korean city. He was sixth in Super-G in alpine skiing and achieved the best result achieved by an Argentine in an individual event in the history of these Games, which are celebrating their fourth edition.

Quintero finished just 0s56 behind the winner, the German Benno Brandiswho won the gold medal with 54s42, and 0s20 from the podium, completed by the Austrian Asaja Sturm and Slovak Andrei Barnas. And so they improved on the seventh places they had obtained Tiziano Gravier in the Super-G of Lausanne 2020; Veronica Ravenna in the luge race a Lillehammer 2016; AND Esmeralda Villalonga in Slopestyle freestyle skiing also on Norwegian soil eight years ago.

Trained by Sebastiano Gastaldihistoric member of the Argentine ski team (he was an Olympian in Members 2014 AND Pyeongchang 2018 and competed in four world championships in the discipline), Quintero had arrived in Gangwon with the aim of making history. “I want to ski at my best level and get into the top five. It’s not easy at all, but I prefer this than finishing in 20th place,” he told the site. Argentine amateur before the trip.

He was one place away – already just 0s10s – from the position he was aiming for, but still celebrated historic results for Argentine winter sports. A result that is not surprising because Nicolás grew up with a pair of skis and is currently one of the best under 18s in the world.

Quintero began skiing with his San Martin de los Andes native when he was just three years old, infected by the passion his father felt for that sport. He started competing in the children’s categories at the age of seven and was fascinated by it. And in 2017 he had his first experience in an international event in Andorra.

“I started to like it more and more there, more than anything else because the good results began to appear and I liked the routine of getting up early to go skiing. Waking up to go to school was not the same as waking up to go to school hill,” he said. .

Last year he joined the senior team group and had the chance to travel and compete overseas. In the 2023 Southern Hemisphere season, he became Argentine under-18 giant slalom champion and Argentine junior slalom runner-up. He finished in the top 30 (29th) in the FIS Junior Alpine Skiing World Cup 2023 from Austria. And he was seventh in the general classification South American Cup circuitin which he ranked as the best athlete in the region under 18 years of age.

Thanks to those good performances, the Argentine Olympic Committee (COA) and the Argentine Ski and Mountaineering Federation (FASA) chose him to carry the national flag at the opening party of the Gangwon Games.

“It’s a little extra achievement that makes me very happy and fills me with pride. I’m very grateful and happy that Tizi gave it to me (Gravier, standard bearer in the last edition), who is my teammate and my friend,” commented, who walked at the inauguration wearing a light blue and white poncho.

Quintero, who will play the Combined this Monday; the Giant Slalom, Tuesday; and in Slalom, on Wednesday—he wasn’t the only Argentine to debut at the Jeongseon ski center. In the women’s Super G, Rio Negro Jazmin Fernandez came 12th and a native of Chubut Milla Anwandter39. In the next few days they will also compete in other alpine skiing events.

The Argentine delegation completes it Justo Estevezmomanger Fernández Righi AND Paloma Angelinocross-country skiing representatives (starts Monday 29th), e Santiago Magni, in freestyle skiing (it will be competed from this Tuesday). Magni was one of six athletes selected by “PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation” carry the Olympic flag at the inauguration.

Argentina has a perfect presence in the Winter Youth Olympic events. In Innsbruck 2012, the first edition, participated with five athletes in three sports disciplines. TO Lillehammer 2016, led a delegation of nine athletes for seven disciplines. It’s inside Lausanne 2020 was present with a record 16 names for four sports. He has not yet managed to inaugurate his medal collection.