The former sprinter was a late convert to rugby, but went on to captain her country and compete in the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens.
Karina Landeros might have been lost to rugby had she not been sidelined from athletics for a year by injury in 2014. Her home athletics track was also used by her local rugby club, who invited Karina to train with them as she began her recovery.
Karina enjoyed rugby so much that her 14-year athletics career was aborted and she was fast-tracked into Mexico’s Sevens side for the 2015 Pan American Games, in Toronto.
“I discovered rugby at the end of 2014, as a women’s team trained at the same track where I had been practising track and field for 14 years,” Karina told World Rugby.
“After many invitations, and a return from injury that took me out of my sport for more than a year, I decided to try it out because they offered me the chance to represent Mexico in the Pan American Games and I loved it.”
Karina was also part of Mexico’s squad at the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco – the only time they have qualified for the finals – an experience that has helped to shape her coaching philosophy.
“There, I was able to tackle New Zealand’s Portia Woodman, which was an incredible experience that showed me that anything is possible - where your idols become your rivals and we can continue to overcome barriers. I had to overcome a lot of obstacles and circumstances to be there,” she said.
After ten years as an international player, Karina, who works as a secondary school PE teacher, has made a smooth transition into coaching. She now combines roles as Head Coach of Mexico’s Under-20s women’s team and Assistant Coach of the national women’s Sevens team, with Head Coach – both men and women – duties at the Legion de Cuervos club in Guadalajara, and the West-Bajio regional women’s team.
“I knew I wanted to be a coach from very early on. When I was in high school and I was a sprinter. I knew I wanted to continue in the sport, and that, when I could no longer do it, I would want to help others achieve their goals and pass on what has been taught to me,” she said.
“Because of this, and the experiences that I had through sport, I studied a related bachelor’s degree and always saw myself as being part of sport, even if I could no longer do it myself as an athlete.”
Karina will now have the opportunity to share her experience and ideas, and to develop new ones as the first Mexican participant in the Gallagher High Performance Academy.
“I am looking forward to getting to know women from around the world on the programme who share similar experiences and understand what they do, what works for them and how they have overcome difficulties,” Karina said.
“I would like to have more tools to improve my training methods as a coach, and be able to communicate in a better way, and ultimately have more impact with my players in the hope of becoming good enough that I can work in a professional team and be successful.”
