What has become of César Ramírez after recovering from cancer?

On May 11, 2016, during an athletics event in Guadalajara, sprinter César Ramirez secured a spot in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games in the 200 meters race, and at that moment, the Sinaloa-born athlete believed his dream was about to come true.

However, he never imagined that a month before the Olympic event, which took place from August 5 to 21, he would have to start a race to save his life, after an anomaly was detected in his body which was later diagnosed as testicular cancer by the doctor.

Thus, Ramirez had to give up running on a track in Brazil and focus on treating his illness. On September 3, he finally won this race and since October has started a new Olympic cycle, where the main objective is to participate in a major event, therefore, Tokyo 2020 is on his mind.

What was the first thing that crossed your mind when you were diagnosed with the disease?

I thought I would miss the Olympic Games and I asked the doctor if he thought I would recover in time for that event. He told me that I would be fine within three weeks, but he said it with the intention of not making me sad. However, later on, he spoke to me and indicated that it would not be possible because I had to receive chemotherapy during that important event.

What did you think when you had to let go of your dream to compete in Rio 2016?

I felt very sad, as it was a goal that I had been working towards for many years, and to be told a month before that I couldn't attend due to the illness was something that hit me very hard. However, while going through the process and recovering from my illness, it seemed like a challenge to get back to 100% and return to the tracks, which I have already done, and I am preparing to face this cycle that culminates in Tokyo 2020.

How was your cancer detected?

I detected it during a check-up. One Monday evening, while taking a shower, I felt a small lump, and it wasn't until Friday that I had it checked by a doctor and on Sunday, I was already having surgery. So everything happened very quickly. I spent a week dealing with the tumor and two months receiving chemotherapy, and in three months, thanks to God, I was already free from that problem. Relatives and friends told me that I should have been at the Rio Olympics, but I was also grateful to have life and health.

On September 3, I had my last chemotherapy session and was given a month of rest before starting training again. I followed that instruction and immediately began training in October. I haven't stopped since, although I am constantly being monitored to ensure there are no anomalies.

Do you already know what time you need to qualify for the World Championships?

My goal is the 2017 London World Championships. The qualifying times have been lowered. They asked for 20.50 seconds to qualify for the Rio Olympics, and now they require 20.44 seconds for the event. But I am confident that I can achieve great things, as I did last year.

Many people think that I will come back somewhat weak or different from previous times, and I will show them that I will return stronger than ever. I will start looking for the qualifying time for the World Championships in March and I will have until July 10 as the deadline to achieve it.