For this edition of the Paralympic Games, Luis Vásquez has qualified for two events and is aiming for a medal in both the 400m and 100m sprints, competing in the T47 class.

"I am here to give my best. After finishing fifth in the last Paralympics, I'm aiming to be in the top three this time," said a confident Vásquez. He clocked a time of 49.61 seconds in the 400m T47 final at the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Despite competing in two events, Luis Andrés is concentrating on the 400 metres, his strongest event, where he has the best chance of finishing at the top of the podium.

"I'm going to fight for the medal that was taken away from me in the last Paralympics," said the athlete, who was born on 16 July 2001 on the Caribbean island of the Dominican Republic.

The 23-year-old Para athlete has an impressive track record, most recently winning gold at this year's World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Xalapa, Mexico, clocking 11.27 seconds in the 100 metres and silver in the 400 metres with a time of 50.15 seconds.

At the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, the Dominican finished in the top five with a time of 49.70 seconds in the 400 metres, positioning him as a strong medal contender at the 17th Paralympic Games.

Vásquez joins a distinguished group of Dominican athletes competing in their second Paralympic Games, including José Frank Rodríguez (para-cycling), Alejandra Aybar (para-swimming), Darlenys de la Cruz (para-athletics) and Alfonso Olivero Encarnación (para-athletics).

Vásquez wants to go down in history, just as Robert Jiménez did in Atlanta in 1996, when he won gold in the 200 metres in the T12 category.

"Seeing that we didn't get on the podium in Tokyo, we are preparing better. We are training harder and have higher expectations than in previous Games, and we want to bring back a medal for the country, something we haven't done since 1996," explained Vásquez, who is competing in the T47 category due to limitations in his left arm.

Vásquez acknowledged that the increase to 12 athletes in the Dominican delegation for these Paralympic Games is a result of the support of CRESO, which has been more involved in the qualification and preparation process for para-athletes.