IN Luis Enrique Patterson, Jamaica has a serious contender for a medal in fencing at the Paris Olympic Games.

But his long road to qualify for the showcase event next summer is far from complete.

Patterson, the reigning Pan American champion for Cuba, which he represented for eight years, has gained clearance to now represent Jamaica.

His story is a compelling one for the many challenges he faced on his way to being known as the best in the Pan American region. Although fencing is seen as a sport for the affluent, Patterson is proof that that is not always the case. He grew up in poverty but his perseverance saw him overcome naysayers and racism to become a regional champion.

“When I was 10 years old people told me I couldn’t make it,” Patterson told the Jamaica Observer. “When I was 13 they told me that I can’t win the national championship. When I was 14 they told me I wasn’t good enough for international competition. When I was on the national team and competed in the Junior World Cup in San Salvador in 2015 they told me that I wouldn’t even pass the pool stage in the competition — and I got the gold medal. They didn’t even send a coach, nobody, because they didn’t believe in me.”

Patterson, 27, is Jamaican on his mother’s side. She had emigrated from Ocho Rios, St Ann, to Cuba.

“Arboine is my second last name — my mom’s last name,” he shared. “There’s a big Arboine community in Jamaica.”

But an eight-year exile from Cuba means he has not seen his mother or ailing elder brother since leaving for better opportunities.

His story began in Holguin, Cuba, where he discovered his love for fencing at age eight.

“My childhood was difficult but I had big dreams,” he said. “I always loved sports but it was fencing that I was truly fascinated by. One day I watched my classmates fencing and it piqued my interest so I decided to try it out for myself.

“My first coach noticed the sparkle in my eye and decided to take me under his wing. The first thing I learned was footwork and so my coach didn’t provide me with an epee [blunted sword for competition] — for the first two years I trained with just a stick! I began to excel and did well in local competitions. I was competing against much older fencers and by age 12 I won my first national medal. I went on to win a gold medal at a youth championship at age 13.

“My talent did not go unnoticed, and at age 15 I was invited to represent Cuba in a competition in France where I won a silver medal at the intercontinental tournament. This win got the attention of the Cuban national team and I was asked to compete as a Cuban athlete in 2011.

“With the support of my family and coaches I moved to Havana to train at the high-performance centre from there on.”

While Patterson was enjoying success on the piste, he struggled to come to terms with life in a house that he was embarrassed to even be seen leaving. His life’s issues were compounded by his parents’ separation when he was 14.

“I was sleeping on the floor in this house,” Patterson said. “My brother was diagnosed as a hemodialysis patent; he has kidney problems. There was only one room and my house is a mess — we don’t even have access to electricity.

“While this was happening I was a professional athlete, living in Cuba for many years, and I always brought that up to the Government and to the national federation and they couldn’t do anything. They said, ‘There are Olympic athletes here, World Championship athletes here, they don’t have access to better either.’

“They couldn’t answer my prayers. I was dying — my family was dying. I said there was only one way I can help them. Plus, I was facing abuse from my coach, my director. They wanted to get rid of me. They never liked me because I was in Holguin, far away from Havana [the capital]. Even then I was facing discrimination from my own black community.

“Something I don’t tolerate is disrespect. That’s a value,” Patterson said, adding that that was what cemented his decision to defect while on a trip to Switzerland in 2019 in an attempt to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games.

He was aware there were serious consequences for that decision.

“I thought: ‘I have to make a decision,’ ” he said. “I go to the Olympic Games and keep living the life where I’m sleeping on the ground, where I cannot go back to my house and tell my friends to come over because I don’t even want them to see it. Or, I can run away and hope, wherever I go in life, I can do even better. And sooner or later, knowing myself, I can find a job and I can do whatever I can to help my family. So, I took a decision and it was very, very stressful. I still have trauma.”

The decision, he said, was not easy because of what would have happened had he been caught.

“When you travel, they have security so if they see you running, they don’t have the right to, but they abuse their power and they can take you and punish you and send you back to Cuba where you can even go to jail.

“I left with my wallet and jacket and just ran to the train, and that was where my journey began.”

From Switzerland, Patterson moved on to Vancouver, Canada, where he now works full-time as a fencing coach and also took the silver medal in the national championships in 2022.

But he said he also faced racial discrimination in Canada, which prevented him from representing that country.

He speaks with his mother and brother daily, but has a weary heart, knowing that his mother, a government worker, is now being punished for his action. He said his brother’s situation is still dire, especially in light of Cuba’s recent food and medical supply shortage.

“I help them every month but there is still so much I can do. They need everything in Cuba,” he said with a heavy sigh. “I can send medicine, I can send light things, but still, whatever they need is difficult to find because everyone is looking for it.

“My mother used to work for a ministry in Cuba and she got kicked out of this job. She was cleaning toilets; nobody wanted to tell me this, but she was. She didn’t want to tell me because she knew I was gonna get upset. It’s not a bad job but in Cuba it’s a way to discriminate against you for what your son did. It’s a way to humiliate you.

“I told her that she should never do that, that I would take care of her — even if I have to work day and night.”

But to get to the Olympic Games next year Patterson still has much to do and admits to being stressed about how little time is left to qualify. Although he recently received his certificate of citizenship, which gave him clearance from global governing body Fédération Internationale d’Escrime (FIE), he is still awaiting his passport. He needs it to embed the required visas to travel and compete in other countries. But he has another big issue — funding.

“I need the support of the Jamaican community and all the persons that know me,” he said. “Everyone who knows me as an athlete knows how passionate I am about sports. I’m training every day and doing everything that I can, but living here in Canada and trying to get a professional coach and personal trainer — everything an athlete needs to go to the Olympic Games — it’s the financial support [that is needed] so I can have access to all of that. That’s what’s stopping me right now. But, I’m ready to go, I’m ready to fight!”

Jamaica Fencing Federation President James Adolphus said in spite of the belief that fencing is a “rich” sport, it requires heavy investment which most fencers do not readily have.

“He needs to go to several competitions so he can get back into the groove of things so he can prepare to qualify for Paris,” Adolphus said. “Luis is a high-performing athlete. His needs are very unique.

“This is why I appreciate the FIE. They know how expensive the sport is and they’ve done things to help younger children so they can gain access to the sport. It’s not a matter of running up and down the streets like many of us used to do as kids. There, you didn’t need anything except your feet or a ball and court, if you need to make one.

“In fencing the clothes and the equipment are not enough. You need to actually have the coach who’s gonna be there guiding you [as] it’s not a team sport and you need your one-on-one training. After that, you have to improve upon those skills via competitions [as] you can only do so much with your coaches. You have several competitions you have to go to and that means air travel, hotels, and insurance — that’s what a lot of people outside our sports might not fully get,” added Adolphus who explained that Patterson is not with Jamaica just for representation, but to realistically attempt to medal in Paris.

Meanwhile, Patterson said that the Cuban public, especially those from his neighbourhood who were aware of his story, are not upset with him because they can relate to his situation. And even though he will now represent Jamaica, they still support him as they still see him as one of Cuba’s own.