Latter-day Saint carries torch in relay for 2026 Paralympic Games – Church News

Two-time Paralympic swimmer Alejandra Aybar is likely one of the torchbearers for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games in Italy.

Aybar, a local of the Dominican Republic and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, wrote on Instagram that studying to swim helped her see prospects slightly than limitations.

“I began to see life from a completely different perspective. What started as a simple passion turned into something much bigger than I ever imagined,” she wrote.

She carried the torch with Felipe Vicini, president of the nonprofit Creando Sueños Olímpicos (Creating Olympic Dreams, in English) that helps athletes within the Dominican Republic to achieve elite ranges in Olympic and Paralympic sports activities.

The Paralympic Torch Relay started on Feb. 24 with a flame competition in Torino and went 2,000 kilometers, or practically 1,250 miles, all through Italy to the opening ceremony in Verona Olympic Arena on March 6, based on details about the relay on Olympics.com. There have been 501 torchbearers throughout the 11-day relay.

Aybar, who’s 4 ft 3 inches tall, has brittle bone illness, osteogenesis imperfecta, often known as crystal bone illness. She started swimming when she was 26 after a knee harm and competed in her first Paralympics at 32 years previous.

The industrial engineer has competed in each the 2020 Tokyo Games and the 2024 Paris Games. In Tokyo, Japan, in 2021, she grew to become the primary swimmer representing her native Dominican Republic to compete within the Paralympics and was a flag bearer within the opening ceremonies. She swam within the 100-meter breaststroke, 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter butterfly, within the divisions for these with bodily impairments. In Paris, France, in 2024, she competed within the 200-meter particular person medley, 100-meter breaststroke and 50-meter butterfly.

The Church News is on the lookout for details about Latter-day Saint athletes. Please ship details about 2026 Paralympians, together with title, nation and occasion, to churchnews@deseretnews.com.