Luana Alonso retires from swimming one day after being knocked out of the Olympics. The Paraguayan immediately treats herself to a tour of Paris - with possible consequences. The 20-year-old only has a smile to spare.
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- Luana Alonso gets stuck in the preliminary heat of the 100 meter butterfly last Sunday. One day after dropping out, the Paraguayan announces her retirement.
- Finishing 29th out of 32 athletes, she fell short of her expectations. "I sincerely apologize to Paraguay, but I did everything I could," says the 20-year-old.
- After retiring, Alonso explores the French capital. However, she left the Olympic Village without permission. The Paraguayan Olympic Committee will check after the Games whether Alonso will be sanctioned. Alonso herself reacted calmly to this on social media.
Luana Alonso waves to the crowds from Paraguay's boat at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. Her first serious competition is scheduled for the following day. After 63.09 seconds, her second Olympic adventure after Tokyo 2021 is already over. She clearly fails the preliminary heat in the 100-metre butterfly.
On Sunday, the 20-year-old South American immediately announced her retirement. "Now it's official! I'm retiring from swimming, thanks to everyone for the support! Sorry Paraguay," Alonso wrote on Instagram, adding: "All that remains is for me to say thank you."
A day later, she also addressed words of thanks to the sport of swimming. "Thank you for allowing me to dream. You taught me to fight. You gave me thousands of joys."
On social media, Alonso is confronted with having acted impatiently. On the X platform, she emphasizes that her retirement was a well-considered decision.
Saying goodbye to top-class sport was anything but easy for her, as she reveals on "Claro Sports". Nevertheless, she would have liked her farewell to have been different. With 29th place out of 32 starters, she fell short of her own expectations. "I sincerely apologize to Paraguay, but I did everything I could."
Leaving the Olympic village - is Alonso facing a penalty?
Alonso is now enjoying her retirement from sport and is doing so with a sightseeing tour in Paris - much to the annoyance of the Paraguayan Olympic Committee (COP). By leaving the Olympic Village during the Olympic Games, Alonso may be in breach of certain COP protocols.
The example of Brazilian swimmers Ana Vieira and Gabriel Santos shows that Olympic athletes cannot move around in the French capital as they please. The pair left the Olympic village to visit the Eiffel Tower. Santos got away with a warning, Vieira was excluded by her own federation and sent home because of her apparently "disrespectful and aggressive" reaction.
Is the resigned Alonso also facing trouble? "We will have to analyze what happened with all our advisors. Leaving the village is not a normal act, it is a small act of indiscipline that we will review on our return," said COP boss Camilo Pérez López-Moreira on radio station Primero de Marzo.
Alonso reacted to the possible consequences with a post on the X platform. "What kind of punishment? If I don't even swim anymore," she writes, adding a teary-eyed emoji to the words.
Alonso's swimming career is over. In future, she wants to devote herself to her studies in political science in the USA, which she plans to complete in 2026.
