Nebraska incoming freshman swimmer Beatriz Padron is headed to Tokyo to compete in the XXXII Summer Olympiad as part of the Costa Rican Olympic Team.
Padron, an 18-year-old from Belen, Costa Rica, will represent her home country as the lone female swimmer at the games and will compete in the 200-meter freestyle. She owns a lifetime best time of 2:06. A Costa Rican National Team member since 2015, Padron owns the Costa Rican national record in the 50-meter butterfly (27.65) and was part of another national record swim in the 4×100-meter medley relay (4:27.09).
In 2018, Padron advanced to the semifinals of the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires.
Padron signed with Nebraska in the fall of 2020 and will arrive on campus following the Olympics. She was ranked as the No. 46 international recruit and No. 153 recruit in the world in the Class of 2021 by CollegeSwimming.com.
“Beatriz has certainly not rested on her laurels since signing with the Huskers,” Nebraska Head Coach Pablo Morales said. “We could not be happier that she will be making a little side-trip to Tokyo on her way to Lincoln. Competing for Costa Rica against the best in the world at the Olympic Games will be an invaluable experience and will be a great launching point for her Husker career.”
While Padron will be Costa Rica’s lone female swimmer at the Tokyo Games, she will be joined by men’s swimmer Arnoldo Herrera. Costa Rica’s full Olympic Team across all sports currently consists of 10 members. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will take place July 23-Aug. 8, 2021 in Japan.
