3 gruesome ACL injuries. Consistent breaks from the international dream. Redemption. This is what Rebeca Andrade’s journey looked like for most of her illustrious career. However, the 25-year-old went on to snag two medals in her debut on the world’s biggest stage. At the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games, she claimed an Olympic gold in the vault finals and a silver in the individual all-around. With this, she was the first female Brazilian gymnast to medal at the event.

Since then, she’s never looked back. The Eiffel Tower shined atop the City of Lights. But the gymnast dazzled brighter during her successful stint at the Paris Olympics. With the curtains drawn on the gymnastics leg of the 2024 Paris Games, the Olympian returned home with 4 more medals. This brought her tally up to 6, making her the Brazilian with the most medals in history! But another Brazilian seems to have surpassed her at the ongoing Paralympic Games.

Meet Carol Santiago. The Paralympic swimmer previously competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics and snagged 5 Olympic medals: 3 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze. However, the defending champion returned to the Paralympic pool to chase glory again. On September 2, the 39-year-old swam to victory in the 50m freestyle S13. With an incredible lead, her stellar time of 26.75 seconds helped bag her 6th Paralympic gold. America’s Gia Pergolini trailed behind in 27.51 seconds. Italy’s Carlotta Gilli completed the podium with 27.60 seconds on the clock.

With this, she is now Brazil’s most decorated Paralympian. Previously, Rebeca Andrade held the national title of most decorated athlete with 6 Olympic medals, but Santiago now holds the most Olympic medals for the nation with a tally of 9 medals. When asked how she felt about her accomplishment, she kept it simple and sweet. “This (record) means a lot to me. It means that we, with all the dedication we had, managed to reach this level, right?” The 39-year-old hoped to inspire others with her journey.

These weren’t the only medals she won in the French capital. Carol Santiago opened her 2024 Summer Games tally with shiny Paralympic hardware in the women’s 100m backstroke S12. Her stellar time of 1:08.23 was well ahead of her competitors. On September 4, she claimed her 8th Paralympic medal in the 100m freestyle S12 with 59.30 seconds on the clock. The Brazilian also claimed her 9th Paralympic medal, a silver, in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay VI. The quartet trailed behind Ukraine, who won a gold in 3:53:84.

However, Santiago and Co. had to settle for the second step of the podium with 3:56:94 on the clock. But she isn’t done yet. She will be back at the Paralympic pool one last time for the Women’s 100m breaststroke SB12 event. Will she be able to defend her Paralympic title and claim another gold? We will soon find out.

Rebeca Andrade’s climb to the top was filled with adversities

In 2015, the 25-year-old had her first brush with a gruesome ACL injury. Not only did she have to miss the World Championships that year, but it also took a massive toll on her mentally and physically. “I had trauma, I couldn’t talk about the injury. Whenever Aline brought up the subject, I changed the subject.” But she found her strength and worked on getting back up until another injury proved to be a thorn in her side. The gymnast had to battle 2 more ACL injuries in 2017 and 2019. 

Operations and rehab became the norm for a bit. But that wasn’t the only issue. Growing up in a family of eight proved just as difficult. “The hardest part was the financial aspect.” There were days when she had to walk two hours to the local gym with her brothers. But neither of these things could hold Rebeca Andrade back. 

On September 3, the Brazilian singer IZA posted a powerful image showcasing her bump on Instagram, captioned, “33 weeks and counting…” Among several congratulations messages, Andrade chimed in as well. Keeping it simple, she commented with a few loving eye emojis. Even though the gymnast might not have the most medals in the nation anymore, she’s still come a long way, and fans can’t wait to see her step onto the mat again.