Why an Olympic sailor is more worried about the food in his country than the water in Rio
RIO DE JANEIRO — The sailing competition got going here Monday, and the question on many minds has lingered for months: How’s the water?
The more pressing question on Jose Gutierrez’s mind over the past few months, like so many of his countrymen, has been: Will there be enough food?
Gutierrez, 23, is from Caracas, Venezuela, and his nation is, in the words of Monday’s Washington Post, “stuck in a doom loop that’s become a death spiral.” Brazil’s neighbor to the north is in a wicked vice grip of hyperinflation and food shortages: According to one study, the average family of five needs $226 per month in order to eat – and the average family makes $15 a month in salary. Children are getting sick and some are dying from malnutrition, and although Gutierrez is healthy and fed, he has concerns far beyond the polluted Guanabara Bay. Raw sewage near a racecourse is one thing; toilet paper shortages back home are quite another.
“It’s pretty hard, especially the insecurity at night,” he told Yahoo Sports after his races Monday. “To find food is very hard.”
[Related: Ibtihaj Muhammad’s impact will endure despite round of 16 loss]
That’s not a good situation for someone whose competitors are all fine-tuning their diets on a daily basis. Gutierrez races the smallest, simplest boat in sailing, the laser, and so strength and fitness are crucial. He says “some days you go to a market and you find some stuff, some days not.” He certainly doesn’t use this as an excuse, but when you go shopping for meat or pasta and they aren’t available, training suffers. And Gutierrez doesn’t get much support from the government.
“It’s very hard to find everything you need to train properly,” he says. “A lot of people have quit sailing because of the situation in the country. I’m mainly sailing alone so it’s hard to keep at a high level. A lot of friends have quit. It’s an expensive sport and they have other priorities than sailing.”
The other problem is the unknown. Gutierrez wanted to travel to the eastern part of the country to find some challenging waves and weather, but he decided against it. “I was afraid,” he says, “because other cities are worse.”
Gutierrez knows his issues aren’t nearly as bad as those that others face. He’s been able to support his career, and he says Caracas isn’t that bad compared to other places. But still … people he knows have been robbed. He’s also heard stories from friends about kidnapping. It’s dire.
“It’s getting worse the last few years,” he says. “Worse and worse. I don’t see things are going to get better soon. It’s hard to go outside with friends. Hanging around in the streets, it’s not safe.”
[Related: Named after Tupac, Olympic boxer Shakur Stevenson has his own distinct style]
So this week is not just a triumph for him personally; it’s a break. Gutierrez is doing something to represent his nation, and hopefully inspiring people back home. It’s even more impressive considering he doesn’t practice against other sailors. There is no huge fleet of competitors to navigate in Caracas. He has to imagine the vessels he will be trying to pass on the course. On Monday, he finished 35th and 36th out of 45 boats in two races. “I’m super proud and super happy,” he says. “My first Olympic Games. So I feel happiness. Nerves.”
And although he is a little bit concerned about the water, like every other sailor, he has bigger concerns that put the smaller concerns in perspective.
“It doesn’t smell good at all,” he says, “but I don’t think we’re going to die from sailing here.”
More Olympic coverage from Yahoo Sports:
