I already had three strikes against me. One, I have light skin. Two, I'm from Miami, which wasn't getting looked at at the time. Three, I'm Cuban. But now, I've made everything that stacked against me into a virtue.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I'm Cuban-American, everybody says. I have a Cuban background, Cuban blood.
I'm actually Cuban-born, born in 1956, the year Fidel Castro came into power, and my father moved my family to Miami a few years later when things were starting to look bad.
I might be a Cuban American, but I'm also an Afro-Cuban American.
Sure, I've listed myself as Cuban-American. That's my heritage and my background.
Living in Cuba made me unafraid of whatever could happen to me.
Cubanas are very strong women. So don't mess with us - don't take us for granted!
But this is Miami, you can't come to Miami and not show any skin. You gotta show something. If you're all covered up in this heat, you're gonna make me pass out out just to look at you. It's sweaty in Miami-but the diamonds will keep me cool.
My main point in this regard was to compete for my country and my people and to receive the support of the entire Cuban society, to carry my flag in whatever competition I was in, the Olympic Games, Pan-American Games.
I'm certainly proud to be Cuban American, and it's a fantastic opportunity for anybody - regardless of their ethnicity or nationality. It does carry a measure or pride to know where you're from and to know what your roots are.
I have four strikes against me. I'm black, I'm short, I'm intelligent, and I have a medical condition.