Triple amputee is now dancing in Ecuador's biggest reality TV contest

A triple amputee who has forged a successful career for herself as a model has proven why is an international inspiration.

Victoria Salcedo, 26, from Ecuador, was five years old when she had both her arms and a leg amputated after she accidentally touched an electrical wire and suffered third-degree burns.

Now, she is a contest in one of the South American country’s biggest reality TV shows – Soy El Mejor (‘I am the best’) showing off her dancing, singing and acting skills.

Victoria, or Vicco, as her 179,000 Instagram followers know her, has admitted she never thought she’d become an influencer.

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But, she told Viral Press, “I like to share my life with others. I like people writing to me and asking me questions, for them to know that they can count on me.”

Salcedo was spotted by a model scout when she was 19, and in 2021 she competed in the Miss Ecuador pageant.

Despite her popularity, she didn’t make it into the contest’s final 10, prompting outrage from fans at the time.

But in an interview with Extra, she said it didn’t matter to her: the experience was what counted.

“It was great to be in the competition and connect with so many people,” she told the news site. “I am Miss Ecuador for many people, some have even said I’m their Miss Universe. The impact my decision to compete had was incredible.

“The year, the sash, the crown didn’t matter, what mattered was the dream of a girl, of a woman, who had to train and prepare just like anyone else. At the end of the day, it’s the experiences we live and take with us that count, not the results.”

Rather than use prosthetic arms, Victoria uses her right leg to eat and carry out other everyday tasksvicco_salcedo/Instagram

Victoria is now working on a book, not about her own story, but about how accepted standards and rules too often limit us as human beings.

She said she aimed to focus on people’s hopes and dreams, and to urge people not to let society “tell us how to think or what to say.”

“We are free people," she said. "And I just want to come up with ways to connect people in the most amazing ways.”

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