Except stop breathing, I have done everything to try to win

Lydia Valentin

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On this occasion, Erika Villaécija (39) meets me at a gym.

And seeing myself in that place with her seems strange to me.

For years, we had always seen each other in a pool, the daily habitat of this former swimming star, seven European podiums (two golds) endorse her, all of them between 2004 and 2012.

What happens is that now, in addition to swimming, Erika Villaécija also moves irons. And she does it professionally. She practices weightlifting and crossfit. She practices them and competes them.

–And why do you compete?

–The transition from elite athlete to normal person is complicated because you are hooked on the adrenaline of victory and defeat, and that is not given to you on a day-to-day basis…

(In addition to displaying all this talent in sport, Erika Villaécija has a degree in Psychology and a swimming commentator for Spanish Television).

(…)

On stage, strong men and women perform pull-ups, twist and scream while lifting weights at the Crossfit Studio, in the Fort Pienc neighborhood, a stone’s throw from the Sagrada Familia.

-Change! –The instructor calls out, who is as strong as her pupils, and the one who did squats on one leg hangs from the rings, and the one who was hanging from the rings now moves on to the burpees.

“In the afternoon it will be my turn to train,” Erika Villaécija tells me, who has gained twelve kilos of muscle and comes and goes through the gym like Pedro around his house.

If we ask him, he tries a squat, and with the bar behind his back he poses smiling for the great Miquel González, who captures the image on the fly.

–Did you feel so empty in 2018, when you stopped competing in swimming?

–It is true that I found a job that occupied me all day (I was a Human Resources technician at the technology company Better Consultants; today it is divided between Agtic Consulting, the role-playing game company Magic Barcelona and the coaching company BeValue). That was the perfect retreat. I stopped thinking about swimming. But then I focused on crossfit and weightlifting. And in these disciplines I decided to compete.

–¿…?

–In my daily life, life does not have as many ups and downs as in competition, and that is what I miss. Now, what I’m not going to do is compete in silly things like Parcheesi, or insist on swimming. CrossFit and weightlifting allow me to compete while having fun, not suffering.

(Eventually he also competes in some minor swimming events; he was a distance runner in his greatest times, now he has won in the 50, 100 and 200 butterfly and 100 medley in the Spanish Cup and some Catalan Championships).

–Are you talking to me about the emptiness that comes when you leave the bubble?

–When you are an elite athlete, you can have a life beyond the possibilities of people your age. You can generate savings and buy an apartment. What usually happens is that you won’t make a living from it later. And then comes the emptiness. When I retired, I went into airplane mode. Inertia got the better of me and I didn’t grieve, I didn’t know how to say goodbye to the elite, and no one tells you this.

-In any moment?

–When you leave the competition, it is important to continue doing sports. Your mind and physical transition need it. I found refuge in weightlifting, but I spent almost three years without touching water.

–Didn’t you miss her?

–I disconnected to the point of not watching World Cups or Games. And then RTVE called me for Tokyo 2020 and that’s when I reengaged. And the duel arrived!

-As?

–Witnessing the inauguration on TV, I found myself at home crying. I realized that I would no longer return to the Games, no matter how much I was going to comment on them.

(To close the talk, we dedicate a memory to Joan Fortuny. He was Erika Villaécija’s coach for decades. He also trained Rafael Escalas, David Meca and Rafa Muñoz. He died on February 10, at the age of 77).