120 Mexican athletes to compete at Rio Olympics

A total of 120 Mexican athletes will participate in the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, the president of the Mexican Olympic Committee (COM), Carlos Padilla, said on Thursday.

"All (athletes) will be going with dignity representing Mexico so that we can achieve the best results," said Padilla during a news conference.

The sporting director acknowledged that it is the first time that Mexico will have a significant number of athletes and he added that all of them qualified as a result of their quality and several years of training.

"The quality of the athletes is more important than the quantity," said Padilla.

For Padilla, even though it is difficult to predict the number of medals the Mexican delegation could win, he reminded that Mexico has stood out internationally in sports such as diving, taekwondo and archery.

"We can't rule out athletics, boxing and shooting, where I hope we will have good results," added the COM president.

Padilla also said that because this Olympic Games they have not been able to count on economic support from the Mexican government, the committee have had to obtain the funding from elsewhere to cover needs such as security and health.

In order to guarantee the athletes training, their travel expenses, uniforms and other needs, the COM are relying on support from sponsors, according to Padilla.

Cyclist Daniela Campuzano, the flag-bearer for the Mexican team, also attended the news conference where she confessed to being excited and awaiting to leave for the competition so that she can give her all for her country.

"It is something that can't be described. I am excited because I will be representing many teammates that I admire and now I will be competing on a world stage such as the Olympic Games and all of us will be representing the same nation," said Campuzano. Endit