Chile confirmed its growing prominence in continental cycling by winning gold medals in both the men’s and women’s time trials at the 2026 South American Youth Games in Panama on Thursday, marking the start of the road races.
In the women’s event, 18-year-old Alexandra Antonia Osorio González triumphed in the 15-kilometer race with a time of 21:19.52. The cyclist, who had recently finished fifth at the Pan American Games, said, “I came for the gold; the goal was to win.”
“Sergio Gili (a team manager), who was following me with the radio in the car behind me, kept telling me, ‘You’re already on medal time,’ that you’re already on the podium. I thought it was third place, and then they showed me the results, and I was the gold medalist,” she said with a smile.
The silver medal went to Colombian Valeria Vargas (21:33.13) and the bronze to Brazilian Vitoria Coelho Da Silva (21:54.27).
Osorio emphasized that it wasn’t just about beating Colombia, a regional powerhouse, but about “winning overall,” and highlighted that “the Brazilian girl who finished third was the one who won the Pan American Road Cycling Championships in the time trial.”
In the men’s race, Luciano Joaquín Carrizo Olivares also secured the gold for Chile. “They were telling me I had won, but I preferred to wait a bit until the last rider crossed the finish line, and then they confirmed that I had indeed won, and I’m happy to have achieved it,” he stated.
The cyclist, with two Pan American silver medals, affirmed that “sport always gives you a chance for redemption” and praised his country’s work: “I think Chile has been doing a good job; there’s an important generational shift.” Brazilian Bruno Octavio Da Silva won silver (34:33.40) and José Manuel Posada bronze (34:36.56).
Source: EFE News Agency and https://momentodeportivord.com