Rommel Pacheco has four Olympic Games behind him jumping off the diving board with Mexico’s colors on his swimsuit -from Athens to Tokyo, with stops in Beijing and Rio de Janeiro- and now, in suit and tie, he is watching over diving and the rest of his country’s sports from his post as the new Minister of Sports. He has only been in office for a week and has already met in person with a dozen presidents and international federations to lay the groundwork for ‘his’ athletes, ‘his’ federations and clubs, and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
In a relaxed chat with SportsIn during the IF Forum 2024 (21-23 October) organized by SportAccord in Laussanne (Switzerland), the 38-year-old former athlete talks about his intentions, his first hours of his new job, the responsibility that weighs on his back and what President Claudia Sheinbaum has entrusted him to do: boost Mexico’s elite and social sport.
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING CLOSE TO THE OLYMPIC FAMILY
“I am very happy to be Minister of Sports in Mexico. I had previously been a congressional deputy for the whole country, being involved in the Sports Commission” and now he has 6 years ahead of him to raise the sporting level of his country in the best possible way. That is why, he acknowledges, “it was very important to be here, in this SportAccord forum, where a large part of the Olympic family and many international federations are present. I wanted to talk to them directly and work together for the good of the athletes and sport in Mexico. We have some situations to fix and improve.
Romel Pacheco during the World Championships in 2019 Gwangju (Seokyong Lee/Penta Press/Shutterstock)
Pacheco, in addition to diving, has been personally involved in world-renowned sports such as freediving, judo, “just this Monday I was talking with the president of the Judo Federation, Marius Vizer, a person with great experience, to start conversations with other federations; also with the president of freediving, Sasa Jeremic, with the archery federation, the equestrian, World Athletics… Being here in my first week as Minister of Sports opens a window of opportunity for me to be able to work hand in hand with the highest sports authorities in the world. We are establishing a better and more direct relationship between CONADE (National Commission of Physical Culture and Sports) and any international federation in which there is a pending issue”.
MEXICO IN INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS
Precisely this Monday there were elections in a great international federation, World Triathlon, in which the Spanish Antonio Arimany was elected as new president and the Mexican Antonio Alvarez as vice-president, is this an example and inspiration for other Mexican leaders. “Of course it is important to have Mexicans in different international federations. It strengthens sport and Mexico’s sports diplomacy and helps Mexican athletes.”
Rommel Pacheco, FINA World Championships, 2019 Gwangju (Seokyong Lee/Penta Press/Shutterstock)
In politics you always look at the first 100 days in office. In Rommel Pacheco’s case, not even 10 days have passed, but what does he have in mind during this period when he will be so ‘watched’? “The first 100 days are important. As a first step -and at the request of the Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum- is to support all Mexican athletes so that they have the best preparation for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. For this, it is key to listen to both athletes and coaches to facilitate this work”. And he mentions again the IF Forum in which he is to emphasize the great opportunity it means for him: “The fact that I am here today is to trace the right path and give them the help and support they need by relating directly with the international federations, in addition to arranging the issues that are on the table between the various national federations of Mexico and the international ones”.
SOCIAL SPORT FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE
Rommel Pacheco in the IF Forum 2024.
In addition, he stresses the most important point of his task: “We will set national public policies for both high performance and social sports, the basis of sport is social sport with access to all. The federations, in this case, have a very important weight together with clubs and the Mexican government for this work and for the detection of talent that will later reach high performance.
Pacheco is a transversal sportsman who will watch over the ‘multisport’ in Mexico, despite the fact that from the outside it is a country that is known for football… “Mexico is not only football. Although it is true that the Mexican Football Federation does such a good job that it is one of the federations that does not depend economically on the country and is managed through private initiatives. It is a positive example for other federations to become self-sufficient, beyond the fact that a model of public and private financing can be implemented, depending on the case”.
THE 2026 WORLD CUP
With the 2026 football (or soccer) World Cup just around the corner, where Mexico will be one of the venues along with Canada and the United States, Rommel Pacheco’s idea is to bring “more world-class events to the country. Mexico is good at taekwondo, judo, archery, diving… It is a great incentive for the athletes to have a great tournament at home. When I was young, it inspired me to watch a diving Grand Prix live. And, in addition to motivating young people, a great event creates sports infrastructure, generates employment, income, activates the economy…”.
Plans, energy, ideas, hope and work is what Rommel Pacheco expresses through his words, gestures and his trip to Switzerland to take advantage of the opportunity to establish a direct relationship between his government and the most influential people in the global sports world. Time will tell if all his plans translate into the implementation of social sports in Mexico and, why not, into an improvement in the medal table of the Olympic Games with respect to Paris, where Mexico won three silver medals and two bronze medals to finish 65th in the ranking,
