Deportista del Año -- Athlete of the Year

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El Tiempo -- the Colombian newspaper -- announced its choice for Athlete of the Year. Their choice: Diego Salazar.

So, who is Diego Salazar? The Colombian athlete that took the Silver medal in weightlifting at the Bejing Olympics.

The Olympics in Colombia are huge! Only, unlike here in the US, they watch every sport no matter who is competing. Here we focus on our own country's stars. There, they know the names of stars from all over in all sports. Last summer, my father-in-law was telling me about a South Korean female weightlifter that he saw win the Gold. Did we even know that there was a South Korean female weightlifter, I ask?

Anyway, when Colombia won their first medal of the 2008 games, it was a silver medal in weightlifting and Diego Salazar became the first Colombian Male since 1988 to win a medal. To see the picture gallery of his win, go to the following link and click on Ver galería.

http://www.eltiempo.com/multimedia/galerias/home/multimedia.php?id_recurso=4439736

You can also see photos of his rather humble family home in Tuluá. Go to the following link and click on Ver galería.

http://www.eltiempo.com/multimedia/galerias/home/multimedia.php?id_recurso=4440764

To see the photos of Diego and other athletes that topped the list for Athlete of the year, go to the following links:

For Photos:

http://www.eltiempo.com/media/produccion/DeportistaDel2008/

To Read the Article -- en Español solamente:

http://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/MAM-3253558

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