The boy of those times only wanted to know how to swim, but life led him to learn more than one discipline. For Franco Serrano, it all began at the age of 11, when a group from the Argentine Pentathlon Federation approached his club, José C. Paz’s Estrada, with the aim of making the sport visible. After a long day of testing, Franco Serrano was fascinated: “When I practiced the pentathlon I loved it. I liked the atmosphere, the way they competed and how they trained. All of that caught me and as I grew up, I learned more and more,” he tells LA NACION, in a talk in which he tells what it means to be in the most important sporting event of his career, the Olympic Games, and how he trains. in the five events (fencing, swimming, equestrian jumping, pistol type and foot race), in addition to studying a university degree.
At 23 years old, he only seeks harmony with the sports he practices and achieve his maximum potential. At the Pan American Games in Santiago de Chile 2023 he got the ticket to Paris. But a year before, he had competed in the World Modern Pentathlon, where he achieved a great 16th place in series A after obtaining 1152 points.
-How do you train yourself in the five disciplines and study at the same time?
-Each discipline deserves effort. For example, swimming, even though I swam from a very young age, was an event that I practiced a lot when I started penta. In high performance, the demands are quite high and one never stops learning. I always try to do my best in each one and try to train in two or three disciplines per day. I swim five times a week, I go running another six times, then I go to the gym for four sessions a week, as well as shooting and fencing, two to three times, as well as horse riding. I plan all this with my coach throughout the year, but it could vary according to the tournaments.
-And how did you manage your studies?
-I wanted to finish primary and secondary school in person and the same thing happens to me with university. There are several athletes who finish their studies virtually because it is difficult to organize both activities. Now I choose to continue going to university every day even though I am sometimes tired, but it is something I don’t want to stop doing.
Serrano studies Business Administration at the University of Luján and is in the third year of his degree. “I did the university subjects as stipulated in the program, but later, as I competed and advanced with the tournaments, my pace was a little according to my needs. The important thing is to never stop, always continue with what you propose. For me, sports and studies are very important things and I choose that path because I like it, although it is sacrificed,” says the athlete who constantly splits between sports scenarios and books.
-What were you like as a child and how did you organize your training?
-Before going to a birthday party, I had my first time, I organized myself well and then I left calmly without any problem. As I say: it’s a balance. I never stopped doing my things, the same thing happened to me in the studio.
-If we go back to your beginnings, how did you discover the modern pentathlon and why did you choose this discipline?
-I started swimming from a very young age, at three years old. My parents took me to the pool to learn to swim. And at first it was all for fun, but little by little, when I learned to swim, I joined the team of the little ones at my club in José C. Paz. Then, when I was 11, the Argentine federation approached my club to promote the pentathlon. And then, he took a large group of kids with a seedbed so that everyone in the club could practice it. At that time we all swam 50 meters and ran 1000 meters, those were the tests we did.
For Serrano, the modern pentathlon is a lifestyle, since its beginnings he has been building a solid career and is on the rise. In 2018 she stood on the podium in the mixed team event with her partner Salma Abdelmaksoud, from Egypt. She is now six months away from competing in her first Olympic Games.
-What does it mean to be qualified for Paris 2024?
-It is a dream come true. It all started little by little and, as time went by, it became a very solid project. Now, what we dream becomes a fulfilled wish. There are many years of training, effort and many sacrifices; I always say that being qualified for the Olympic Games implies maximum dedication, but the reward is always greater than all that effort. And it’s always worth it; That’s something I want to convey to other athletes.
-How do you work on the pressure that the Olympic Games generate in themselves?
-It is impossible not to be afraid, we are all afraid of an event like this. We all have many emotions and even the best athletes in the world have nerves and often feel that pressure. In my case I was a very talented boy at my young age, I always trained, I dedicated myself to improving… so perhaps my tool to overcome those emotions was my confidence, my security when competing. I try to rely on all the work I did on the court and the training with my coach. All of that helps a lot.
-And how do you accept defeats?
-It is important to always accept what we feel in those moments. I don’t know… the anger, feeling bad, all that is what you don’t have to repress, because an athlete will always have ups and downs. When you lose you feel “the worst” and it’s okay to feel that way: you have to learn to feel that way. I have had a lot of times in tournaments where I wanted to go underground, but you have to learn to go through those feelings and move forward. That helps you a lot, and then look for the best way to improve and surpass yourself.
-How was your experience at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games?
-I am very happy for the good results we obtained there. It was one of the most important events of my life and on a sporting level one of the most demanding, since they were my first Pan American Games as adults. Even though I competed in Buenos Aires in 2018 and in the Junior Pan American Games in 2021, they give you a lot of experience, but the Pan American Games bring out your maximum level and demand a lot of effort from you. Furthermore, they have a very high category.
The athlete had already had great performances in the youth category in recent years. In December 2021 he won the South American Championship in the Argentine city of Magdalena and in August 2022 he won bronze at the NORCECA International Championship, in the Dominican Republic. And in 2023 he had already shown his good form with the seventh place obtained in the UIPM Challenger in Poland. And thanks to the fifth place he achieved in the final of the modern pentathlon in Santiago 2023, Serrano secured qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games after obtaining a total of 1,479 points: 266 in fencing, 291 in swimming, 278 in horse riding and 644 in laser run.
-What is the most difficult thing about being an athlete?
-Being away from my family was always something that cost me a lot. Trips are often long periods and one has to go through those moments. That affects me because I am an athlete who has always been accompanied by his family since I was very young, since I never went to train in another country. That option is good because it helps you improve in the sport, but that was never a possibility due to the family factor. It is important to be accompanied by loved ones during the learning stage until the competitions.
-Where does the desire to continue learning come from?
-It comes from many sides. Mainly, my family always helped me and accompanied me with all my projects, not only in sports, but on a personal level. I was always able to continue and I was able to advance in all of that, thanks to your support. And the truth is, sport is something that interests me a lot, but I know that studies are also important, just like other things.
-How do you evaluate the growth of the pentathlon in Argentina?
The Pentathlon is not a giant federation like other federations of other sports here in Argentina, but despite that they do great things to expand this discipline, mainly with children. I remember that once, I think it was at a Junior Pan American, at that event there was a lot of kids who were also dedicated to this sport and the majority were under 19 years old, that speaks of growth.
-How do you evaluate Enard’s support?
-I have scholarships from ENARD and the Sports Secretariat, but I also belong to the Argentine Army as a sports soldier. All of this helps me a lot, I’m more or less managing it, but I think something is always needed. Incentives for athletes, training and things like that. I see it that way, but everything they do is very valuable. I live with my parents and that in a certain way helps me a lot, they were the main pillars so that I can continue sports and studies. The Argentine athlete has a lot of passion to do what he likes, perhaps we have a little more fame for football, which is what is seen most around the world, but in other sports there is also a lot of passion and a lot talent.