Princeton University Athletics
Paola Rodriguez of Women's Cross Country Latinx Heritage Month Feature
October 15, 2022 | Women's Cross Country
Sophomore Paola Rodriguez is a member of the Princeton women's cross-country team who plans on concentrating her studies in neuroscience. Paola is from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and her heritage plays an important role in her everyday life as a student-athlete.
"The track community from home has taught me to always be humble and to check in on my teammates", said Rodriguez. "These are valuable lessons that have really made my experience as a student-athlete at Princeton so much better."
It always makes Paola so happy to see Puerto Rican track athletes competing at the NCAA Championships that she can look to for inspiration. She can't help but feel connected to them, having grown up with the same values and within the same, track community.
One athlete Rodriguez really looks up to is Ayden Owens, a Puerto Rican decathlete who won the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor titles and placed fourth in the World Athletics Championships this summer. Along with Owens' dedication to the sport, she also admires the pride he has for his heritage and how he genuinely loves representing Puerto Rico.
One way that Paola shows pride for her Puerto Rican heritage is competing in races back home. "Of course, I want to continue competing because I love running", said Rodriguez, "but I also feel like it is a true honor to wear the Puerto Rican uniform and run at the Puerto Rico nationals. No season is complete without racing in front of the people I grew up with and feeling the energy of Puerto Rican track meets."
Being a Latinx student-athlete at Princeton has allowed Paola to connect with so many different people. Not only has she been able to interact with rest of the Latinx community on campus, including many other Puerto Ricans, but she has also shared her culture with her fellow cross-country teammates.
"I love to share my music with the team whenever we are together both in and out of practice", said Paola. "I think music is a very cool thing to share with others that can show a lot about a culture and bring people together. Also, Bad Bunny (a Puerto Rican rapper and singer) objectively has the best workout music."
Although Latinx Heritage month is just 31 days, Paola is always proud to embrace her Puerto Rican roots each day as a student-athlete at Princeton University.
