Help Andriete sprint for Gold !

At the age of 10, I was determined to become a professional athlete. Faced with two options for specialization - football or track - The 10-year-old chose football. Only to find out 20 years later, my true calling was track (sprinting) instead.

For 19 years, I faced and overcame financial hardships with football for club registration, accepting rejection from US Soccer Schools, undergoing ACL & Meniscus surgery. By 2018, I reached a mental block. I chose to start fresh in New Zealand. Fast forward to 2023 - Mum reminded me of my school track record and how happy I was after every School Sports Day. And so, I decided to start training track for fun.

A few weeks later, my coach nudged me to participate in the Auckland Championship, I surprised myself by finishing first among athletes who had been training for years. This helped me qualify for the 2024 NZ Nationals in Christchurch. Suprised myself, again. Not only did I beat my 60-meter record with a time of 8.43 seconds, but also finished my 100mts in 13.43 secs and 200mts in 28.88 seconds. I secured a podium finish with 2nd place at NZ Masters Nationals Track and Field Championship.

I've now qualified to participate in my first-ever world event - 2024 Oceania Masters Athletics Championship in Fiji. This sparked a fire in me to keep pushing limits. Feel like I’ve come full circle in life. I’ve finally discovered my purpose again and can now set sprinting goals for myself. However, there remains one barrier - that's why I'm here.