Today, Lieutenant Cristian Camilo Afanador Botero trains the future non-commissioned officers of Colombian National Army and represents the institution as a Paralympic swimmer, demonstrating that service to the homeland transcends any adversity.
Resilience has led Lieutenant Cristian Camilo Afanador Botero to overcome each of the tests that life has imposed on him. After losing his left leg in the line of duty, he assures that, if he were to be born again, he would choose to serve in Colombian National Army again.
On November 21, 2021, during a military operation against the GAO Clan del Golfo in the department of Chocó, an anti-personnel mine exploded when Lieutenant Afanador was advancing with his unit, after eleven soldiers had previously transited through the same place. The detonation took away his left leg, caused fractures in his right hand and left multiple splinters in different parts of his body.
In the midst of this difficult moment, his thoughts turned to the reality faced by thousands of men and women of Colombian National Army, who daily expose their lives in fulfillment of the mission and coexist with the permanent threat of explosive devices planted by organized armed groups.
The weather conditions made his evacuation difficult, forcing him to wait for nine hours to be taken to a health care center in Cali, Valle de Cauca department. They were decisive moments in which Lieutenant Afanador found in resilience the strength to continue and turn adversity into his greatest strength.
A long recovery, hundreds of hours of therapy and the adaptation to a prosthesis marked the beginning of a new stage. Although the medical diagnosis determined a loss of 90% of his working capacity, this was not an impediment to continue serving the country. Today he is an instructor at the Sergeant Inocencio Chincá Non-Commissioned Officer School of Colombian National Army, where he shares his experience with the new generations of military personnel and has become a benchmark for leadership, discipline and service vocation.
His spirit of self-improvement in the same way led him to dabble in adapted sports. Currently, in addition to his work as an instructor, he represents Colombian National Army as a Paralympic swimmer, demonstrating that the physical and mental strength of a soldier is in the same way reflected in his ability to get up, adapt and keep reaching new goals.
The inspiration by his father, a non-commissioned officer in Colombian National Army, and the permanent memory of his mother, whom he considers his guide from heaven, have strengthened his character and consolidated in him a deep love for the homeland, an unwavering vocation of service and a passion for military life.
On the Day of the Heroes of the Nation and their Families, Colombian National Army exalts the life story of Lieutenant Cristian Camilo Afanador Botero, a man who transformed adversity into a new opportunity to serve. His example shows that the honor of wearing the uniform does not end in the field of operations, but remains intact in those who make discipline, resilience and commitment to the homeland a true life purpose.
Source: Press - National Army
