Costa Rican surfer gets ready for the Olympics today

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Published on Monday, August 5, 2024

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Costa Rican surfer, Brisa Hennessy (24), from Matapalo Cape, Osa Peninsula, Puntarenas Province, will compete today Monday at the Surf Women's Semifinals match in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

According to the Olympic Committee, the Hennessy competition was originally set for Saturday Heat 2 but was canceled on several occasions due to inclement weather.

Brisa's new challenge will take place on Monday, August 5, at 12:48 p.m. Costa Rican time, at Teahupoʻo Beach, located on the southern side of the island of Tahiti in French Polynesia, unless the Olympic organization announces any further modifications.

The Costa Rican surfer must defeat Brazilian Tatiana Weston-Webb (28) to get her ticket to the finals.

Hennessy qualified for the semi-finals after beating Luana Silva of Portugal on Thursday with a total score of 6.37. Silva was eliminated with a score of 5.47.

Brisa's parents are U.S. citizens; her mother, Katherine Malia Kobara, is from Hawaii, while his father, Michael James Hennessy, is from California.

Six Costa Rican athletes, including Hennessy, are competing for the country in the Olympics. One of them, Gerald Drummond (29) had the potential to earn a medal.

Drummond competed on Monday, August 5, at 2:00 a.m. Costa Rican time in the 400-meter hurdle race at Saint Denis Stadium. The athlete earned a total of 48.80 points.

His next match will be held on Tuesday, August 6, at 4 a.m. Costa Rican time. His first Olympics was in Tokyo 2020, however he was eliminated in the first round.

The Committee welcomes all Costa Ricans to support their athletes by viewing the competitions. Repretel Channel 6 and 11 will broadcast the Olympics across the country.

The rest of the Costa Rican representatives were eliminated in their respective competitions.

Milagro Mena (31) took part in a road cycling match on Sunday, August 4th, at 6 a.m. Mena lost the 158-kilometer race through Paris' streets owing to an accident in which she fell from her bicycle. This was her second Olympic appearance; she competed in Rio 2016 but was eliminated.

On Wednesday, July 31, it was the turn for Alondra Ortiz, who participated in the swimming race, at 3 a.m. at La Défense Arena. The 22-year-old Tica competed in the 200-meter swimming match, making 2:18.56 time, not enough to advance to the next hit. She was eliminated on her Olympic debut.

On Saturday, July 27, at 2 a.m., Alberto Vega competed in the men's 400-meter freestyle swimming race at Paris' La Défense Arena. The 19-year-old swimmer reached a time of 4:03.14. Not enough to advance to the second round he was eliminated. This was his Olympic debut.

Also on Saturday, it was the turn for Sebastián Sancho (25), to compete at 3 a.m. in judo games. He lost the men's 60-kilogram match against Michel Augusto from Brazil 1-0. That was Sancho's Olympic debut.

Costa Rican athletes have won four medals in their country's history. Silvia Poll won a silver medal in the women's 200-meter freestyle at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Claudia Poll, Silvia's sister, earned three medals in women's freestyle swimming: one gold in Atlanta in 1996 and two bronzes in Sydney in 2000.

A total of 206 national teams are participating in the Olympics. However, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Olympic Committees of Russia and Belarus have been suspended for violating the Olympic Truce. Athletes from these countries will compete as "Individual Neutral Athletes" (INA), without national affiliation, provided they do not "actively" support the war against Ukraine.

The 2024 Games are projected to cost over $9 billion.

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