Juan Luis Barrios: I don't run out of nostalgia, but because I feel alive in every race.

Adriana Díaz Reyes

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, p. a12

Thirty years after beginning his athletics career, Juan Luis Barrios still feels that tingling in his chest minutes before the start of a competition. The excitement remains, undiminished even though he now competes in the masters category and has traded middle-distance events for the marathon.

As I get older, I see things differently. At my peak, all I thought about was reaching the final of every competition I attended. Now that I look at everything from the outside, I understand that being among the best depends on many things, including the sports system in each country and the support for its athletes. It seems like we all have the same opportunities, but that's not always the case , he shared.

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Barrios achieved what has been his best athletic result: a seventh place in the 5,000 meters, a competition in which Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele broke the Olympic record for the event. Four years later, he finished eighth at the 2012 London Games.

I don't run out of nostalgia or to fulfill some unfinished business. I do it because I still can, because I enjoy it, and because I feel active and alive in every race , he confessed.

Hunger for success

His hunger for success never ceases with the passing of the years. In addition to his Central American and Pan American medals, the 42-year-old athlete won gold in the masters category at the World Championships in Gothenburg last year.

Age is unforgiving. Sometimes your mind goes faster than your body, and there are difficult days when you just can't reach your goal. However, as long as my legs have the capacity to run, I'll do it because it's what I love.

In addition to staying active, Barrios created his own training group where he shares the knowledge passed down to him by the legendary Tadeusz Kepka.

▲ At 42, the Mexican runner continues to rack up victories, including the gold medal in the masters category at the World Championships in Gothenburg. Photo @darth.barrios1

I was delighted to run with members of my team in the Mexico City Half Marathon and also to share the miles with the children of my high-performance opponents. Teaching others is also a facet I truly enjoy , added Barrios, who was part of pentathlete Emiliano Hernández's multidisciplinary team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

A few days ago, he presented his book Sueño Olímpico (Olympic Dream) , a project to which he dedicated a couple of years and which he wrote with the collaboration of Jorge Cuevas and the prologue by former sprinter Alejandro Cárdenas.

You'll find pages that recall the Olympic cycles in Athens, Beijing, and London, the reality I experienced, and the daily life of a Mexican athlete. There are also many anecdotes I experienced in high performance and the challenges I faced.

I don't know if I was the best, but I was the one who most believed I could achieve it, is one of the quotes from the book most treasured by the runner, considered by many to be the best long-distance runner in the history of Mexico.

I hope my story will inspire new generations, so they know what it's like to achieve a dream and that nothing is set in stone in sports.

Although international success in middle-distance events has been limited in recent years, Barrios is confident that Mexico has the talent to return to its glory days.

We have riders like José Luis Santana and Juan Joel Pacheco. We hope they can soon reach their full potential and create new success stories .

▲ The four Mexicans made history. Photo taken from social media.

From the editorial staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, p. a30

Baseball players Alejandro Kirk, Jonathan Aranda, Andrés Muñoz, and Randy Arozarena made history at the Atlanta Braves' Truist Park: for the first time, four Mexicans participated in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

After a 6-6 tie after nine innings, the game was decided by a home run duel for the first time in history. The National League won 4-3 over the American League.

Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies hit three home runs in the tiebreaker. Mexicans Arozarena and Aranda batted for the American League, but came up short.

In the bottom of the eighth, Muñoz came on from Seattle with the mission of not allowing any more runs for the American League.

The most Tricolor representatives were selected to an All-Star Game in 1983, with two: Fernando Valenzuela of the Dodgers and Aurelio López of the Detroit Tigers. This record was matched in 1986, 2010, and 2024.

During the game, the late Hall of Famer Hank Aaron was honored by recreating his 715th home run using projection mapping and pyrotechnics.

The scene from April 8, 1974, at the old Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium was projected onto the infield and also on the screen.

Teams returned to their regular-season jerseys after four years of heavily criticized special uniforms.