Reconocimiento social de un atleta, Nelson Crispín Corzo

Abstract

The visibility of a sporting competition and its protagonists, the athletes, is far above any other issue of global interest. Athletes attract large audiences that from different sectors are seen as opportunities to show national pride or to sell hundreds of products and services that have nothing to do with sports. This article analyses the visibility of the figure of an athlete in social imaginaries, taking as a contemporary reference the figure of the athlete in Colombia. Nelson Crispín Corzo, a swimmer who has won multiple international titles, including Paralympic medals, which has given him visibility and recognition in the media. Previously, major events could only be appreciated by those who were physically present in the place where the events took place, perceiving what happened directly through their senses. But the technological leap meant that millions could witness an event thanks to new technologies such as radio and television that allow them to hear and see events that may be unfolding thousands of kilometres away. The above draws attention precisely to the social significance that sport enjoys, as it seems that there is no other subject of human interest that surpasses the attention paid to everything that has to do with sport, its different manifestations, but especially to its protagonists, the athletes. In this sense, this work intends to focus on the aforementioned scenarios, on the figure of a Paralympic athlete and with this underlies the particularity of a public figure, outstanding and that enjoys a trajectory that makes him unique not only in the national sphere (in Colombia), but also in the world. Nelson Crispín Corzo, Colombian athlete, participant in various sporting events at national, regional and world levels, is one of the Colombian athletes with the most Paralympic medals to date. This particularity makes it interesting to explore the figure of an athlete of the highest level in sport and its association with his social significance in the Colombian context.