Team Paraguay’s Luana Alonso broke her silence after recent reports claimed she was kicked out of the Olympic Village for creating an “inappropriate environment.” Taking to her Instagram page, she shared a story of a snap of her watching the sunset from a balcony with a hot drink. She wrote: “I just wanted to clarify that they never took me out or expelled me from anywhere, stop spreading false information.
“I don’t want to give any statement but I’m not going to let lies affect me either.”
Reports of the 20-year-old swimmer being kicked out of the Olympic Village emerged after authorities claimed she was creating an “inappropriate environment.”
Her country had high hopes for the athlete as she came to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games holding the 50m, 100m, and 200m butterfly Paraguayan records, but her performance ultimately disappointed as she came in sixth place in the preliminary heats.
Team Paraguay’s Luana Alonso broke her silence
The results created what was described as “a tense atmosphere” inside the team, which resulted in the athlete allegedly getting into a confrontation and announcing her retirement from the competition.
Soon after she left the Villa out of her own volition without the approval of her supervisors, the Paraguayan Olympic Committee applied disciplinary measures against her.
Following the alleged incident, Larissa Schaerer, head of the Olympic Paraguayan mission, wrote an email on August 1 to the athlete ordering her delegation to “immediately carry out [Luana’s] withdrawal from the athletes’ Olympic Village.”
Her alleged expulsion from the Olympic Village was also reportedly tied to a trip to Disneyland Paris that angered Paraguayan Olympic officials and wearing skimpy outfits instead of team clothing.
Luana documented the visit to Disneyland with photos on Instagram after she failed to advance out of her heat and into the women’s 100m butterfly semifinals on July 27, The New York Post reported on Monday (August 5).
The athlete reportedly modeled a pair of Mickey Mouse ears in front of the castle at Disneyland Park in a few snapshots, while another photo featured two champagne flutes toasting at the park.
Recent reports claimed she was kicked out of the Olympic Village for creating an “inappropriate environment”
The photos were posted to a highlight on her Instagram account on July 29, The Post reported.
Paraguayan media outlets reported that Luana chose a tourist destination over supporting her teammates, which upset the country’s Olympic leadership.
A separate report by The Daily Mail on Monday said that Luana became a distraction to other competitors with her “skimpy clothing and socializing with other athletes.”
Taking to her Instagram page, Luana shared a story of a snap of her watching the sunset from a balcony with a hot drink
Luana reportedly checked into a hotel in the French capital city and visited high-end stores and restaurants after she was asked to leave the Olympic Village.
Despite being a decorated athlete in her country, having won three medals at the 2022 South American Rosario Youth Games, and participating in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Luana has stated that swimming is not her end goal.
“I love swimming competitively, but that’s not what I want for my life,” she told Paraguayan radio station 730 AM. “I would like to have a family, and if I keep being tied to the sport, I don’t think that will be possible.”
“My performance was not what I was hoping for, and I’m very emotional because this will be the final race of my career,” she said in a separate interview while holding back tears. “It’s been 18 years of my life. I apologize to Paraguay with all my heart. I did what I could.”
The swimmer continued: “Despite the result, I’m happy to retire in the middle of a packed stadium here at the 2024 Paris Olympics.”
Camilo Pérez, president of the Paraguayan Olympic Committee, delivered some disparaging comments about the athlete, citing rumors that Luana might be intending to compete for the US in future events.
She wrote: “I just wanted to clarify that they never took me out or expelled me from anywhere, stop spreading false information”
“She didn’t come here because of her scores, she came here because she’s Paraguayan. If she intends to represent the US she will have to achieve scores that she has not achieved so far,” he said, according to Latin American sports news site AS.
On July 28, Luana took to her Instagram page to share: “Swimming: thank you for allowing me to dream, you taught me to fight, to try, perseverance, sacrifice, discipline and many more.
“I gave you part of my life and I don’t change it for anything in the world because I lived the best experiences of my life, you gave me thousands of joys, friends from other countries that I will always carry them in my heart, unique opportunities.
“It’s not goodbye, it’s see you soon.”
“Define inappropriate,” a reader commented
