Luana Alonso angered her Olympic bosses ahead of the Paris Games after reportedly declaring she would rather compete for the United States than Paraguay.
The glamorous swimmer represented the South American country at the Olympic Games in the French capital. She finished sixth in the first round of the 100m butterfly, missing out on qualifying for the semi-finals.
Alonso was subsequently reportedly removed from the athletes’ village, with Paraguay accusing her of creating an “inappropriate atmosphere” through her behaviour.
But the 20-year-old continued to insist she was the victim of “lies” and “false information” following the Paraguayan Olympic Committee’s statement.
A report from the Paraguayan publication Todayhas now stated that she would rather represent the United States, long before competing at the Paris Olympics.
Luana Alonso reportedly kicked out of athletes’ village for ‘inappropriate behavior’
The glamorous swimmer represented Paraguay in the 100m butterfly at the Paris Olympics
Alonso has claimed she is the victim of “lies” and “false information” after reports
According to reports in Paraguay, she has expressed her desire to represent the US over the South American nation (pictured back in the United States in an Instagram story on Sunday)
It is said that her claims arose after she qualified for the Olympics through the Universality system – designed to increase the diversity of participating countries in the Games.
Alonso said: “I want to represent the United States more,” before adding: “I want to represent the United States more.”They are threatening me that they are going to publish a statement that I am going to leave because of universality.
“If I support my sport, it’s because of my sponsors. They want to humiliate me and say: ‘It’s not so bad that you leave because of universality.'”
She added that she preferred to return to college in Texas because she was dealing with tensions over qualifying for the world swimming championships.
Alonso said: ‘Instead of saying, ‘Damn, we trust the athletes’, and not, ‘You’re going for the World Cup, we don’t care’, it’s not fun to represent Paraguay. If it were up to me, I would go back to university.’
In a report by AS SportParaguayan Olympic Committee President Camilo Perez responded to Alonso’s alleged claims by saying: “I read that she wants to compete for the United States.
“There is no universality there. She came here as a Paraguayan. She has to train a lot more to represent the US, her times have to be a lot better.”
The Paraguayan lives in the United States, where she studies at Southern Methodist University near Dallas, Texas, and also swims for the Dallas Mustangs.
Alonso lives in the United States and trains in Dallas, Texas, where she also swims for the Dallas Mustangs
Alonso ran into Rafael Nadal (right) during the matches and shared a snap of the pair on X
The Paraguayan star started swimming at a young age and first competed when he was 11 years old
Alonso, pictured during the opening ceremony, has around 600,000 followers on Instagram
In an Instagram story on Sunday night, she revealed she was back in the United States, posting a video of herself in a car with an American flag flying in front of it.
After competing in the swim, she sensationally announced her retirement in an Instagram post, but she remained in Paris.
She was seen walking around in the outfits she had chosen herself, rather than the official uniforms given to her by the Paraguayan team manager.
She was also spotted socialising with other athletes and is said to have distracted her teammates, who were still competing in the Games.
Alonso even checked into a hotel in the French capital and visited luxury shops and restaurants, sharing photos with her 600,000 followers on social media.
But the Paraguayan team removed the 20-year-old player from the athletes’ village, citing Alonso’s “inappropriate behaviour” as justification for the decision, as the Olympic Games enter their final week.
The statement did not elaborate on what her inappropriate behavior entailed.
Larissa Schaerer, head of the COP mission, said: ‘Her presence creates an inappropriate atmosphere within Team Paraguay.
“We thank her for acting according to instructions, as it was her own free will not to spend the night in the athletes’ village.”
Alonso previously competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which were postponed due to COVID
But in a statement on Instagram on Monday, Alonso said: “I just wanted to make it clear that I have never been thrown out or sent away from anywhere. Please stop spreading false information.
“I don’t want to make a statement, but I also won’t be influenced by lies,” Alonso added alongside a photo of herself enjoying a drink as the sun set.
The Paraguayan made her Olympic debut in Tokyo four years ago and is one of the youngest athletes to retire from sport at the age of 20.
Alonso confirmed her retirement last week, saying: ‘Swimming: thank you for making me dream. You taught me to fight, to try, perseverance, sacrifice, discipline and much more.
‘I gave you a part of my life and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, because I’ve had the best experiences of my life. You’ve given me thousands of joys, friends from other countries that I’ll always carry in my heart, unique opportunities.
“It’s not goodbye, it’s see you later.”
