Indeed, this is the largest delegation in its history, with nearly half a hundred athletes, 22 of them debutants, aiming to change recent history. Among them are 24 Pan American medalists hoping to bring joy to the Chilean people.

Although there is a more positive atmosphere, expectations remain modest. Only Crovetto and Mailliard have managed to position themselves as Chile's real chances of winning a medal after a turbulent 16-year period.

On 26 July, flag bearers Antonia Abraham and Nicolás Jarry will lead a team full of hopes and objectives. Chile’s ATP No. 1 will form a lethal tandem with Alejandro Tabilo, being runner-up and semifinalist, respectively, in this year’s Rome Masters 1000.

Chile has accumulated 13 Olympic medals in its history. The last was won by the brilliant tennis player Fernando González, who took the silver medal in Beijing 2008. This time it's not González, but Jarry, aside from Alejandro Tabilo, would also like to make a splash in the Olympic tennis tournament.

Shooter Crovetto won the gold medal at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago and is ranked 16th in the world in women's trap shooting. The veteran from San Miguel will be competing in her fourth Olympics and is still seeking a medal.

Mailliard, on the other hand, won silver in Santiago 2023 and gold in the C1 1000m category at the 2023 Canoe World Championships. Ranked fifth in the world in that category, there is a lot of faith in the canoeist.

If a Chilean athlete were to win a medal in Paris, she would be the second woman in the nation’s history to do so. The first and only one so far is Marlene Ahrens, who won silver in javelin nearly 70 years ago, in Melbourne 1956.