Autobiography

Early life and education

My name is Jonathan Quesada Castillo. I was born in Alajuela, Costa Rica on October
19th of 1996. I grew up in a small village in the mountains. I started school when I was
six-years-old. I went to kindergarten through fifth grade at Jose Miguel Zumbado Soto
Elementary. Then I attended Liceo Carrillos de Poas High School, and there I won a
couple of awards: one for perfect attendance and two for being named Student of the
Year--one in seven grade and the other in ninth grade. Currently, I am studying English
in the National Technical University.
My passion
Together with my parents and my elder sister and brother, I spent a lot of time in nature.
We liked very much to be active. Continuous outdoor and sportive activities evolved
during our school days. So we started to take part in competitions within different sports.
In this process my elder brother, my father and I got fascinated by mountain biking.
More and more we developed a big enthusiasm for a playful and hands-on riding
technique. Consequently, my family and I mostly spent holidays and leisure time on our
bikes during my youth. Some years later, I decided to get involved in the professional
competitive environment. At the same time, the Costa Rican racing competition AMPM
Cross-Country Cup was established. Within this cup, I gathered valuable experiences
and celebrated important victories. Since 2013 I am a professional mountain biker. In
the year 2014, I became a member of the professional team of Coopenae-MovistarEconomy. Together we achieved two single U23 national championship titles, the

bronze medal at the Pan-American of 2015 in Colombia, and many others. At the
beginning of this year, I was hired by the worldwide professional team of Specialized.
This season has been the best I have had, because I have been winning races in the
elite category in Costa Rica as well as internationally. It is my ambition to continue like
this for many more years.
Ups and downs
Of course, I understand that life is not just a bed of roses, and challenges and hardships
are an integral element of life. When I was seven years old, I had a traffic accident. A
truck hit me when I was crossing the street after coming from the school. I was
submitted into some surgeries to heal my left ankle that was almost destroyed.
Fortunately, the surgery was successful. Some years later while training for a world cup,
I had an accident on my bike, and I broke my two clavicles at the same time. Honestly, it
was a nightmare to know that I wouldnt be the representative of the national team of
Costa Rica in the world cup championships, and it also hurt a lot. Again, I had to go to
the operating room, but this time it was ambulatory. Nevertheless, I almost die because
something went wrong after the operation. The doctor said that my lungs were filled of
water, so I couldnt breathe. Those two situations have been the most difficult times in
my life.
Meaning of life
The meaning and purpose of life to me isnt all that easy to figure out, but I know that we
should live for Gods glory. I am a boy who loves God and everything that surrounds
him, so the meaning of life to me is to walk by faith and accomplish his will. If you want

that everything in your life becomes valuable, so God should be there in all your
decisions, plans, thoughts, activities and so on. I am just a guy that thanks for every
single day, and a person who wants to be a blessing for others.