Sport in Colombia

Sports in Colombia refers to the practice of sports in the Republic of Colombia. There are Professional sports leagues as well as amateur leagues for numerous sports being Football (soccer) and cycling the most practiced and popular sports in Colombia. The Government of Colombia sponsors numerous individuals and teams nationally and internationally through the Ministry of Culture for competitions in representation of Colombia despite the country's economical and social problems throughout the years. Professional Sports achievements are subject to national pride for Colombians.

History

There is one notable leisure sport native to Colombia called "tejo" which is derived from the muiscas indigenous peoples. Blood sports like bullfighting and cock fights were introduced by the Spaniards and their culture during the colonization of the Americas.

ummer Olympics

Colombia has participated in the Summer Olympics of 1932, 1936, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008

Football (soccer)

Football was introduced by British workers in Santa Marta and Barranquilla in the late 19th Century while working for multinational companies such as the United Fruit Company and the construction of the railroad in the Caribbean region and later to Bogotá were the leagues developed. The professional practice of football (soccer) is managed by the "Federación Colombiana de Fútbol" (Colombian Federation of Football) which has managed the professional level of football soccer in Colombia since its foundation on July 20, 1924. The organization is associated to the FIFA and CONMEBOL since 1936. The Colombia national football team participated in a FIFA World Cup in 1962 followed by others in 1990, 1994 and 1998. The best presentation being in 1990 when the team reached the second round.

Its most notorious achievement was the winning of the Copa América 2001 edition, which was also hosted in Colombia. It also classified for the 1968, 1972, 1980 and 1992 Summer Olympics. Throughout the years many Colombians have also worked for leagues in other nations. The national leagues compete in the Copa Mustang which also participates in international tournaments like Copa Libertadores de América upon winning or finishing in the first places.

Notable Football Players

* Carlos "El Pibe" Valderrama
* Leonel Álvarez
* Iván Córdoba
* René Higuita
* Iván Córdoba
* Luis Amaranto Perea
* Juan Pablo Ángel
* Freddy Rincón
* Oscar Córdoba
* Mauricio Serna

Cycling

Professional Cycling in Colombia became very popular after the triumphs of Martín Emilio "Cochise" Rodríguez in European cycling competitions which in turn helped to develop the Colombian Cycling Federation. Rodriguez was later followed by a generation of bicyclers known as the "Colombian beetles" which include up to this date Luis "Lucho" Herrera, Luis Felipe Laverde, Fabio Parra, Víctor Hugo Peña, Santiago Botero and more recently Mauricio Soler. These competitors created a fan base in Colombia which in turn helped to create the "Vuelta a Colombia" a local cycling competition.

During the 1990s the government of the Colombian capital, Bogotá introduced the Ciclovía which became popular and were introduced later into other Colombian cities. The government of Bogotá later built the Bogota's Bike Paths Network to sponsor the practice of sports by the population and to curve the city's increasing pollution by drivers. The network extends throughout the city with bicycle use increasing 5 times in the city. There is an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 trips made daily in Bogotá by bicycle. A large portion of this use is in southern poorer areas.

Champions

*María Luisa Calle, bronze medal winner in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and World Champion.
*Fabio Parra, 3rd place in the tour de France, 1988
*Santiago Botero, Counter-clock world champion
*Martín Emilio "Cochise" Rodríguez, Hour competition world champion and world Champion in 4000 m pursuit.
*Marlon Pérez, Youth World Champion by points, 1994
*Efraín Domínguez, Double world record in kilometer and 200 m pushed 1987
*Maria Luisa Calle, Medalla de Bronce Juegos Olímpicos Atenas 2004, Campeona mundial 2006
*Lucho Herrera, "El jardinerito", Champion of the Dauphiné Libéré 1988, 1991 and Vuelta a España, 1987
*Martín Ramírez Champion Dauphiné Libéré 1984
*Alfonso Florez Ortiz Champion Tour de l'Avenir, 1980
*Víctor Hugo Peña, only Colombian cyclist to wear the Yellow jersey in a Tour de France leader, 2003.

BMX racing

*Mario Soto World Champion
*Mariana Pajón 4 times World Champion UCI cruiser category
*Santiago Duque World Champion UCI cruiser category 2002
*Augusto Castro World Champion

Martial Arts

Boxing

Professional Boxing in Colombia is mostly practiced in Caribbean region and in poor areas of the western regions of Colombia. Boxing in Colombia was also introduced by Europeans in the late 19th Century and became popular in Latin America in the early 20th Century and in Colombia became popular in the 1960s with the triumphs of Antonio "Kid Pambele" Cervantes who became a two time world Jr. Welterweight champion. He was then followed by boxers like Prudencio Cardona, Rodrigo Valdéz, Fidel Bassa, and many more. The success of these boxers created a fan base and many Colombians started to follow the sport. The National Boxing Commission of Colombia ("Comisión Nacional de Boxeo de Colombia") was created and regulated the practice of boxing in Colombia.

In the 1980s the success of Miguel "Happy" Lora reigned in the bantam weight division (118 pounds) -WBC- from 1985 to 1988 and the silver medal in the Pan American Games of Carlos José Tamara. Another boxers have figured internationally and won some tittles such as Ener Julio, Joel Julio, among others.

During the 1990s surged Irene "Mambaco" Pacheco who became a world champion in the IBF Flyweight category and in the 2000s Fulgencio Zúñiga current IBO Super middleweight champion.

Champions

*Tomas Molinares, World Boxing champion, welter jr division (WBA) 1988
*Prudencio Cardona World Boxing champion, light division 1982 (WBC)
*Ricardo cardona World Boxing champion
*Elvis Álvarez World Boxing champion light division 1989-1990 (WBO), 1991 (WBA)
*Irene Pacheco World Boxing champion FIB, fly division 1999
*Kermin Guardia World Boxing champion OMB, minimum division
*Beibis Mendoza World Boxing champion AMB, minifly division
*Camilo el "Bambino" García World Boxing champion FIB, fly division 1992
*Daniel Reyes World Boxing champion FIB, minimum division
*Rodrigo Valdes World Boxing champion AMB - CMB medium division
*Luis "Chicanero" Mendoza World Boxing champion
*Jorge Eliecer Julio World Boxing champion and Bronce medal 1988 Olympic Games
*Mauricio Pastrana World Boxing champion
*Antonio Cervantes "Kid" Pambelé World Boxing champion welter jr
*Miguel "Happy" Lora World Boxing champion 1985 until 1988 (WBC)
*Fidel Bassa World Boxing champion, light division 1987 - 1989 (WBA)
*Rafael "Derby" Pineda Campeón Mundial de Boxeo Welter jr
*Ener Julio World Boxing champion welter jr
*Edison Miranda
*Carlos Maussa World Boxing champion welter jr
*Miguel "Huracán" Barrera World Boxing champion FIB, minimum division
*Miguel "Mascara" Maturana World Boxing champion Aficionado rooster division, Montreal, Canadá 1981
*Joel Julio
*Robinsón Pitalúa
*Clemente Pérez, bronce medal, 1972 Summer Olympics
*Alfonso Pérez bronce medal 1972 Summer Olympics
*Rubén "Huracán" Palacios World Boxing champion feather division OMB
*Juan Urango World Boxing champion super light division FIB

Roller skating

With the introduction of inline Inline skates in Colombia during the 1990s roller skating became widely practiced throughout most of the main cities in the country. It was mostly popular in the main and medium size cities such as Cartagena, Cali, Bogotá, Pasto, Barrancabermeja, Barranquilla, Medellín and Valledupar.

Notable

*Claudia Ruiz Female Inline speed skating world champion 300 meters, 1990
*Luz Mery Tristan Female Inline speed skating world champion 5000 meters, 1990
*Guillermo Leon Botero Inline speed skating world champion 20000 meters 1990
*Luis Eduardo Moreno Inline speed skating world champion in China, 300 meters
*Liana Holguín Female Inline speed skating world champion in China
*Andrés Felipe Muñoz 15,000 meters Inline speed skating Junior world champion in Abruzzo, 2004 in China 2005
*Brigitte Méndez Female Inline speed skating world champion 15.000 m elimination, Abruzzo (Italy) 2004, Sushou (China) 2005, 1.000 m line Sushou (China) 2005
*Juan Nayib Tobón Multiple World champion Inline speed skating in China
*Silvia Natalia Niño Multiple Inline speed skating world champion
*Diego Rosero Multiple Inline speed skating world champion
*Cecilia Baena Female Inline speed skating world champion
*Berenice Moreno Female Inline speed skating world champion
*Jorge Botero Inline speed skating world champion
*Jennifer Caicedo Female Inline speed skating world champion 500 meters Duisburg (Germany) and Suzhou (China) and in Barquisimeto (Venezuela)
*Edwin Guevara Inline speed skating world champion 1996, 1998
*Anderson Ariza Inline speed skating world champion 2002
*Alexandra Vivas Female Inline speed skating world champion 10,000 meters (Italy) 2004
*Nelson Garzon Inline speed skating world champion 10,000 meters points, 2006
*Jersy Puello Inline speed skating world champion 200 m and 1.000 m (Italy) 2004
*Carolina Upegui Inline speed skating world champion 15,000 meters (Italy) 2004
*Kelly Martinez Inline speed skating junior world champion 15,000 meters Barquisimeto (Venezuela) 2003
*Jorge Cifuentes Inline speed skating junior world champion 1.000 m, 500 m J (Italy) 2004

Motor Sports

*Roberto Guerrero former Formula One pilot.
*Martin Cardenas 250cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing pilot.

With The most known Colombians that Los colombianos más destacados en los deportes de motor son el piloto de Fórmula 1 Juan Pablo Montoya y el piloto de Martin Cardenas.

Juan Pablo Montoya has been the most successful sportsman in motor sports in Colombia with a cameo in Formula One and of 2006 in the NASCAR, United States.

Chess

*Miguel Cuéllar
*Boris de Greiff
*Ilse Guggenberger
*Luis Augusto Sánchez
*Alonso Zapata Finished Second Youth World Championship 1977, Great Internacional Masters.

Athletics

*Ximena Restrepo Athletic runner, Bronze medal 1992 Olympic Games
*Orlando Duque Diving, World Champion

Baseball

*Liga Colombiana de Béisbol Profesional
*Colombia Baseball World Cup Champions 1947, 1965.
*Colombia Gold medal "Bolivarian Games" in Lima, Peru 1947
*Colombia Gold medal "Central American and Caribbean Games" in Barranquilla 1946
*Jackie Gutiérrez, Major League Baseball player
*Jolbert Cabrera, Major League Baseball player
*Orlando Cabrera, Major League Baseball player
*Luis Castro, Mexican Colombian Major League Baseball player
*Edgar Rentería, Major League Baseball player Champion 1997 World Series with Florida Marlins
*Emiliano Fruto Major League Baseball player, pitcher Seattle Mariners

Bowling

*Jairo Ocampo Bowling World Champion, 1974
*Armando Mariño Bowling World Champion, 1983
*Clara Juliana Guerrero Female Bowling World Champion, 2003

Golf

Marisa Baena was Champion of the first HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship, in 2005.

Currently, Camilo Villegas is the most recognized Colombian golfer in the international level. Since 2006 he participates in the PGA tournaments in the United States, such as his first appearance in the Ford Championship where he ended third, three strikes away of Tiger Woods.

Weight lifting

*María Isabel Urrutia female weight lifter, multiple times world champion and gold medal 2000 Olympic Games
*Mabel Mosquera female weight lifter, bronce medal 2004 Olympic Games

Olympic Wrestling

*Albeiro García World Champion Greco-Roman wrestling, Stockholm, 1980
*Joselio Mosquera World Champion Greco-Roman wrestling

Tennis

*Alejandro Falla, professional tennis player
*Mauricio Hadad, professional tennis player
*Fabiola Zuluaga, female professional tennis player
*Catalina Castaño, female professional tennis player

hooting

*Helmut Bellingrodt Shooting world champion and 1972, 1984 Olympic Games
*Bernardo Tovar Automatic pistol world champion in Moscow 1990 and seven time champion of in pistol, fast shooting and automatic pistol.

ee also

*Colombia at the 1972 Summer Olympics
*Colombia at the 1984 Summer Olympics

References