Jefferson perez

As a pre-schooler, the life of Jefferson Leonardo transpired the same as all the other children of the neighborhood, amid economic limitations. As a student of Eugenio Espejo School and later atGabriel Cevallos School, he had to work as well as study in order to help out at home.
In spite of a visual handicap, his mother is one of the pillars in Jeff’s success in sports. Apart from inculcatingthe best manners, she showed great inner strength in achieving success together with her children. In addition to Jefferson and Fausto, the Perez-Quezada family comprises Fabian, Marcia Patricia andFanny.
In addition to his sports career, the 1996 Olympic champion worked hard as a student in order to graduate with a degree in commercial engineering and to obtain also a Master in BusinessAdministration from the University of Azuay.
His first important triumph was the bronze medal at the World Junior Track and Field Championship in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, in 1990.
Then two years later, the firstconfirmation of his talent come on winning the world junior title in Seoul, Korea. “Father, I fulfilled my promise to become world champion” is the text written on a post card dedicated to hisdeceased father. Later there were more triumphs in the senior category in Bolivarian, South American and Pan American competitions.
The definitive confirmation of his greatness came with the gold medal inthe Olympic Games of Atlanta in 1996. On the morning of July 26, he overcame all incredulity by Ecuadorians, as it was only a very small circle of those who closely followed his career that held anyhope for a medal. The injection of experience by the Colombian coach, Enrique Peña, was the determining factor in motivating Jeff and determining his strategy for the competition. The favorites in theevent were also surprised by the unknown Jefferson Perez.
Certainly there have been difficult obstacles in his path such as a fractured collar bone in 1993 and a herniated disc in 1999, diagnosed...