It started to rain and the nerves seized Pablo Jaramillo. His bicycle did not brake well, since the asphalt was wet. The roads were narrow, and undoubtedly this overwhelmed him. However, he was full of courage and gave the best of himself until he reached the goal.

Pablo Jaramillo graduated from TCS in 2017. At this moment he is dedicated to what he loves: cycling. He belongs to the group “Jóvenes Ciclistas Para el Mundo” of the  “Liga de Ciclismo de Antioquia”, and has brought gold to his category in numerous races like “El clásico Colombiano de Ciclismo Juvenil”. Nowadays Jaramillo or “Jara” as his friends call him, is a very important athlete for Medellín and Colombia. If he keeps up with his high performance, he could be the next Nairo Quintana.

From the beginning

“I started riding when I was 14 years old,” says Jaramillo. “I don’t know why I started; I had always liked it but I didn’t have where to train.”

Pablo lived in Europe for 6 months, and it was there where he found the perfect place to start training.

Pablo’s plans for the future spin around his bike. He decided to concentrate full time on route cycling, which is why he skipped college and enter directly to his professional career.

“The idea of not going to college had been in my head for a long time , but in February 2017 I decided to concentrate on becoming a professional cyclist,” said Pablo Jaramillo

Like Pablo, recognized professionals in the sport had to overcome obstacles and prioritize activities in order to reach their goal. José Julian Velasquez or “chivo”, the professional cyclist and ex coach of the Colombian selection for cycling was one of them.

“My brother started cycling at the age of 14. When he turned 16 he went to Europe to train. He returned to Colombia at 18, and by then he was already a professional. Julian sacrificed many things for becoming the person he is today,” says Ana Lucia Velasquez, sister of José Julian Velasquez.

“Julian had no support from his country, he went to the olympics without a team or a trainer,” says Ana Lucia Velasquez.

But for him as for Pablo, the hardest part of their career is being different from the rest of the group. There were boys with more resources and consequently with greater opportunities, but because of this  they faced discrimination and acts of jealousy that threatened their development quite often.

“He was a different person from the group, a person with resources and that’s why they treated him differently,” claims Ana Lucia Velasquez.

Being a high performance athlete at school

The Columbus School helped Pablo in his passion and dream. “I feel very grateful with the school for understanding and supporting me always,” says Jaramillo.

He had a permanent pass from the school to go out train, however, his grades and his academic performance was excellent.

“Cycling helped me organize my time wisely. I knew I had to study and take advantage of my time at school because there wouldn’t be time later,” he said.

Like him there are also other athletes who are supported by the school in their careers.

“My experience as a high performance athlete in school requires a lot of discipline and awareness, because either you take advantage of the school, or you take advantage of the sport. It is necessary to have a balance and manage your time very well, because if it is not impossible to achieve it ,” says Amalia Triana, a TCS student and member of  the dancing crew” Blue Blood .”

Cycling became the life of Pablo Jaramillo. Consequently he had a big responsibility with his coach and team, that is not usual for a college student.  Being still a child, he decided to sacrifice hanging out with friends and going to parties, for riding a bicycle, going to bed early and having a balanced and healthy diet.

“Cycling has tons of advantages, but what I like the most is being able to do what I love, to explore the world and to understand the body [in order] to get the best performance from it.  “The disadvantages could be some sacrifices such as staying away from family, friends, and having to take great care, ” said  Jaramillo.

His recent triumph

Last October 28th and 29th, Jaramillo participated in “El Clásico Colombiano de Ciclismo Juvenil”, a race divided in two stages, in which this young man demonstrated all his abilities.

Although he did not compete with the team, Pablo made it to the top of the podium in his category.

Throughout the race, he faced weather conditions that could have threaten his victory. It started raining and the nerves consumed the athlete, the streets were wet and his vision was disrupted by the water, but none of these obstacles beat the cyclist.

“It was amazing to feel how people you don’t know respect and admire you,” said Jaramillo after his victory.

This race was very important, not only because it gave him one more triumph in his career as a cyclist, but also because it was the last race of the season and of his Juvenile period.

“I am feeling better than ever, I was champion in the last race of the year. Now what’s left is to  rest and prepare for next year”