National Hispanic Heritage Month 2014: Greatest Chilean Sports & Athletes Over the Years
It's been exactly 204 years since the South American country of Chile gained their independence from Spain.
It was no easy fight, as the Chilean War for Independence would still continue for numerous years afterwards. Eventually victorious, Chile, with some help from Argentina, has been a great sports country ever since.
Soccer
Like most countries, soccer is the most popular sport in Chile. Although Chile has never won the FIFA World Cup, they did have the honor of hosting the games in 1962. That year was their most successful Word Cup year, as they would place third overall. Chile made it all the way to the semifinals, but lost to the eventual champions, Brazil, 4-2.
Marcelo Salas and Leonel Sanchez are tied as the two all-time leading goal scorers for the Chilean national team at the FIFA World Cup.
Tennis
Soccer is the most popular sport amongst fans, but tennis is gaining recognition in Chile more and more. The tennis success in Chile has been felt globally.
Anita Lizana was the first Latin American to win a Grand Slam championship, the 1937 U.S. Open. She was also ranked No. 1 in the world that year. At the 2004 Summer Olympics, Chile showed off their talents by winning two gold medals. Nicolás Massú won a gold in the individual, and another gold with Fernando González in the doubles competition. These are the only two gold medals in Chilean Olympic history.
Boxing
Boxing is a very popular sport in Chile. Although not many Chile-born boxers have their presence felt in the United States, their talents are known very much in South America. Many rivalries in the ring with Peru have taken place.
Chile showed off their talents at the 1956 Summer Olympics. Ramón Tapia won a silver medal by defeating Gilbert Chapron of France. Claudio Barrientos and Carlos Lucas would win a Bronze that year for their victories.
Polo
When it comes to sports in Chile, horses play a big factor. Chilean horses are some of the most recognized in the entire world, along with Spain. Chile has one of the best Polo teams. They won the 2008 World Polo Championship against Brazil in Mexico City, Mexico.
Gabriel Donoso is widely considered the best polo player from Chile. Unfortunately, he died on the course shortly after falling off a horse in 2006.
Horse Racing
Chilean Polo hasn't really made its way to the United States, but horse racing has, and in a big way. Many Latin American jockeys have dominated the last two decades of horse racing. One of the most notable is Jose Santos, who won the 2003 Kentucky Derby, 2003 Preakness and the 1999 Belmont Stakes. Those victories gave him the career Triple Crown. Ruperto Donoso first made his mark by winning the 1947 Belmont Stakes.
Surprisingly, rodeo is the National Sport of Chile.