Rincon de la Victoria lad wins hearts and Simon Cowell’s Golden Buzzer

Spain’s south coast has a habit of producing remarkable talent, and one athlete from Malaga has taken that reputation onto an American television stage.

Malaga athlete wins Simon Cowell’s Golden Buzzer

Rubén Roldan Bustos, 23, from Rincon de la Victoria, stunned the judges on America’s Got Talent with a parkour performance carried out without his prosthetic leg.

Simon Cowell was so impressed that he pressed his Golden Buzzer, sending the Spanish athlete straight through to the live shows.

Rubén lost his left leg in a tractor accident when he was nine. Rather than allowing the tragedy to define his future, he turned towards sport and eventually found his passion in parkour.

Years of training have helped him become a record-breaking adaptive athlete. Guinness World Records lists three records he achieved in Almeria in November 2024, including a 1.36-metre running jump onto a platform and a 1.30-metre vertical leap with a running start.

From the Costa del Sol to the world stage

America’s Got Talent is not Rubén’s first television appearance. He previously competed on Spain’s Got Talent and Germany’s Das Supertalent, taking his extraordinary skills far beyond Malaga.

His latest performance has introduced his story to millions of viewers in the United States and around the world.

For south coast residents, seeing a local athlete turn tragedy into sporting ambition is especially uplifting.

Rubén’s story also fits a wider truth about southern Spain. From elite sportspeople to musicians, artists and performers, talent regularly develops far from the world’s biggest stages before attracting international attention.

His Golden Buzzer moment offers another reminder that extraordinary ability can come from anywhere — including the towns and villages of Malaga.

For Axarquia readers, that may be the most inspiring part of all. World-class talent is not always something to travel abroad to find. Sometimes it starts right here on Spain’s south coast.