A New Challenge for Adriana Diaz who Revels in the Heat of Battle
June 17, 2008

Adriana Diaz with new found friends in Chengdu Photo By Courtesy of Bladimir Diaz

Courtesy of ITTF Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz is one of Latin America’s most promising players, of that there is no doubt but she is not present at the Latin American Junior Championships being staged in Cartagena, Colombia. She is at the other side of the world; she is in Chengdu at the famous training school from 10th June to 18th July 2008; when the sun is setting in her home in Puerto Rico, it is rising the following day in Chengdu, China.

Adriana is the eight year old daughter of Bladimir and Marangely Diaz; a family that is steeped in table tennis, a family that has provided endless opportunities for young people.

Four Children
They have four children, Melanie is twelve years old, Gabriela is ten, then there is Adriana and the youngest member is Fabiola. She is five years old and of course, she plays table tennis.

All four practice during the week in the Club “Las Aguilas de la Montaña” in Utuado and Adriana is usually at the Olympic Training Centre two weekends a month.

Extrovert
She is the extrovert in the family, she learns quickly; she demands high standards and is fascinated by challenges.

She was born on 31st October 2000 and loves the Rocky films; it is the spirit of battle that attracts her.

Culinary Desires
Table tennis is uppermost for the immediate future but Adriana is thinking light years ahead. Ultimately, she wants to be a professional chef and to have her own restaurant but of course table tennis is her passion.

In fact she has never known life without table tennis; she first held a racket when three years old, hitting the ball against the wall; then at the age of four she practiced on the real thing, the table.

Support
She is the golden jewel in table tennis circles in Puerto Rico, a country that is making immense progress, thanks to the support they have received from a combined effort.

David Berner the Minister of Sport is a forward thinking administrator and has proved outstanding support as has Joyce Melendez, the Secretary for High Performance and the Program for Women in Sport.

Furthermore, Ivan Santos Vice President of the Puerto Rico Table Tennis Association and Leticia Castaldo, the secretary, have given relentless support and made the logistical arrangements for the Chengdu visit with Radames Tirado Legillou, the Adviser for table tennis in the Sport And Recreation Department being the person to endorse the proposals for the China visit.

Two Hundred Teachers
The achievements gained in Puerto Rico are most noteworthy and Glenn Tepper, the ITTF Director of Development Program has always been impressed; under the direction of David Bernier, Glenn Tepper visited no less than two hundred schools and involved over two hundred teachers on a recent visit.

Fantastic Achievement
However, if there are two people to congratulate above all other for the progress of table tennis in Puerto Rico, it is the husband and wife duo of Bladimir and Marangely Diaz; they have taken the sport from zero to international level in their country, a fantastic achievement.