Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso, who had an Olympic tattoo, retires at the age of 20 after not making the cut.

Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso, who had an Olympic tattoo, retires at the age of 20 after not making the cut.

The 20-year-old Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso, who competed at Southern Methodist University and gained notoriety before to the 2024 Olympics by getting the five rings of the international competition inked on her hip, announced her retirement from swimming on Saturday.

Alonso had already suggested that this would be her second and last Olympics when she posted a photo of herself on X on Wednesday, sitting in front of the rings and wrote the word "last" next to an emoji of a dancing woman.

However, Alonso announced her decision about her swimming career in an interview with Claro Sports following her heat's sixth-place result in the 100-meter butterfly at the 2024 Paris Games. She then addressed supporters in an additional Instagram post.

"It's confirmed!" In the caption, Alonso wrote. "Thank you so much for your support; I'm retiring from swimming! I just had to say thank you, Paraguay, sorry!

She was not able to get past her heat to compete in the women's 100-meter butterfly semifinals on Saturday afternoon and Sunday's final.

With a run of 1:03.09, Alonso placed sixth in her heat and was somewhat faster than her time of 1:00.37 from her heat at the Tokyo Olympics three years prior.

Alonso said to Claro Sports after the race, "I am very emotional because it was my last race," as reported by the Daily Mail. "I am going to stop swimming. I have been swimming for eighteen years, and I feel a lot of different emotions.

Alonso recorded career-best performances in the 100- and 200-meter butterfly events in 2023. Alonso previously competed in swimming for a season at Virginia Tech before transferring to SMU.

 

Although Alonso participated in the NCAA championships that year, her name was missing from the SMU roster for the 2023–24 campaign.

Even so, in June, she shared on social media to celebrate her opportunity to participate in Paris.

It's official. It was in June, Alonso posted on Instagram. "I am a 2024 Paris Games qualifier! I'm incredibly honored to be the nation's representative once more! I am grateful to my family, friends, and sponsors that helped make this happen! Let's travel to Paraguay.

Following Alonso's elimination, Team USA swimmer Gretchen Walsh of Virginia set a record in the women's 100-meter butterfly semifinals, finishing just two tenths of a second short of her own world record. This allowed Walsh to secure a spot in the medal round.