Aug 3, 2026 · 12 min · 9 segments
By Mimi Moore Blending her experience as a high-level athlete with executive expertise, Mariana Quintanilla manages complex language operations for international tournaments. She builds essential…
an athlete building language operations for the world's biggest sporting events.
Most of us have had a moment of panic when we're out of our element.
Being in a foreign country where you don't speak the language is scary enough.
When you're an athlete at one of the most important events of your whole year, it can be terrifying.
Mariana Quintanilla thinks about what happened to her all the time.
She was 15 years old, alone at a tennis competition in Russia, when something went wrong with her accreditation.
Instantly, I felt relieved and supported, she recalls.
Without realizing it, I was learning about the importance of language services.
Today, Mariana is head of language services for Saudi 2027, building the linguistic infrastructure for the Asian Football Confederation, AFC Asian Cup.
She has managed interpretation and translation at some of the world's biggest sporting events, the Pan American Games, the FIFA World Cup, the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, and a string of other global events.
In tennis, when a racket meets the ball at exactly the right point, Players call it the sweet spot.
Maximum power, minimum effort, and a perfect result.
For Mariana Quintanilla, it's where language and sport join to not only bring people together, but help us understand each other a little better too.
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an athlete building language operations for the world's biggest sporting events.
Most of us have had a moment of panic when we're out of our element.
Being in a foreign country where you don't speak the language is scary enough.
When you're an athlete at one of the most important events of your whole year, it can be terrifying.
Mariana Quintanilla thinks about what happened to her all the time.
She was 15 years old, alone at a tennis competition in Russia, when something went wrong with her accreditation.
Instantly, I felt relieved and supported, she recalls.
Without realizing it, I was learning about the importance of language services.
Today, Mariana is head of language services for Saudi 2027, building the linguistic infrastructure for the Asian Football Confederation, AFC Asian Cup.
She has managed interpretation and translation at some of the world's biggest sporting events, the Pan American Games, the FIFA World Cup, the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, and a string of other global events.
In tennis, when a racket meets the ball at exactly the right point, Players call it the sweet spot.
Maximum power, minimum effort, and a perfect result.
For Mariana Quintanilla, it's where language and sport join to not only bring people together, but help us understand each other a little better too.
