Daniella Ramirez Paris Olympics — Daniella Ramirez (Left) opens up struggles in the sport of artistic swimming [Images courtesy: @daniellaaramirezzz on Instagram and Getty ]

"I get just enough to cover my rent a month”- Olympic medalist Daniella Ramirez opens up on struggles as an artistic swimmer

Modified Aug 29, 2024 04:58 GMT

Paris Olympics silver medalist Daniella Ramirez spoke about the struggles of sustaining as an athlete in the sport of artistic swimming. Despite making it into the U.S. Olympic women’s synchronized swimming team, the athlete revealed that she had to pursue other endeavors to pay the bills as she made just enough to pay the bills every month.

Ramirez was a part of the U.S. Olympic women’s synchronized swimming team that won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics. She spoke to BBC about the struggles the team faced to compete on the global stage. Right from not having a designated pool for practice to sometimes training in a single lane, the team has seen it all.

Ramirez said:

"It is not every four years, it is every single day. It is missing Christmas, it is not going home, it is missing your family. It is worth it but it is really gruelling. You don't get paid unless you get results and you don't get results unless you get resources. My team doesn't have a pool. We go to different community pools and we train in like one lane a day, sometimes. The ideal situation is like we would have a real training centre".

Furthermore, Ramirez revealed that she received support from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic committee however, it is just enough to cover her rent every month. So, social media is her primary source of income. She added:

" The USOPC [U.S. Olympic and Paralympic committee] has graciously allowed us to be funded so I get just enough to cover my rent a month. It’s not enough to be a career and this is a full-time job. My primary job right now—the thing that makes the most money—is definitely TikTok, Instagram, and all my social media handles. You can do things on your own time, on your own schedule, make ends meet, and get to do your sport full-time".

Daniella Ramirez on winning silver medal at the Paris Olympics

Artistic Swimming - Olympic Games Paris 2024: Day 12 - Source: Getty

Daniella Ramirez won her first Olympic medal in the French capital in the women's artistic swimming team event. This podium performance ended Team USA's 20-year Olympic medal drought in the women's artistic swimming.

Ramirez later took to Instagram to express her thoughts, saying:

"OLYMPIC SILVER MEDAL!! 🥈 words cant describe how proud I am of this team and HOW MUCH I LOVE THEM. Thank you to everyone who’s helped, supported, and kept me going.❤️ Grateful to take home some hardware for @teamusa," she wrote.