• Coronavirus. Last minute

What do I see out the window? A closed school ». Carolina Marín , one of the queens of our sport, carries the running of the bulls like everyone else, in the best possible way. At times in good spirits: at times, with concern. The days, yes, he says that they are not long, that nothing is boring at all. I train, series, calls, reading, cooking ... «I don't stop». The new home stress that so many people are discovering. It is defined as homemade, but not so much, of course.

«I like to rest here when I'm not traveling, which is almost always. One thing is that and another this surreal situation », he tells by phone from Huelva , under cover with his mother -« I haven't given him a kiss since I arrived ». With it he took refuge after participating in a tournament in London while Spain cast the blind of the state of alarm . It was one of the last to continue in competition, due to the heterodox British way of dealing with the coronavirus. Then, plane to Seville and car to his hometown. "Here people are aware, it is one of the least contagious places in the country," she proudly points out.

Marín received the news of the postponement of the Games yesterday with satisfaction. The good sense that she had been demanding for days prevailed. She already belongs to the first generation of Olympic champions whose title will last five years. There is no point in celebrating them under these circumstances. As much as things had improved, there would be restrictions, risks and many athletes could not have dealt with them in the proper way. You have to go to 200 percent preparation. And with this break we would not even reach 30 », argues one of the best badminton players in the world.

The Olympic move to 2021 will clash squarely with the Huelva World Cup , scheduled for August, a project closely linked to the figure of the Spanish champion. The two events could not coincide in the same year.

Now will come the difficult restructuring of the world sports calendar and his own, but everything in time. Disciplined on the track and at the microphone, she tries to keep the focus on what is most urgent: the prevention of disease and the choral effort of society to obey health instructions.

Disciplined

He is shaken, like everyone else, by the stories of the runaway death that reaches the ER of hospitals, of the triages that calculate life expectancies before assigning an ICU bed and of the lonely victims who in goodbye hold their hands with a glove from unknown toilets and of which the only human trait they can see is the eyes, under those bulky protective space suits.

Denounced the incongruity that would have been a Games - a festive event for the public and an examination for athletes - Carolina goes no further. She does not protest that she is tied to the classroom, nor does she ask the authorities for permits to go out to train, as they have done from other specialties.

"Athletes must set an example. What's important is what's important. That people take care of themselves, that they don't go outside, that they don't put their own people at risk. Sport is my life, but now I say it very loudly: it is something secondary », he says with the firmness he spends on the track, with that strength of legs and, above all, the head that is his brand image. In the elite, every detail can be decisive, from the intimidating scream of gaining a point to the slight draft of the air conditioning in the pavilion, which suddenly feels like a tickle at the nape of the neck. It is then necessary to modify the flight of the steering wheel.

Together with their coach, Fernando Rivas , they have formed one of the most successful duos in national sport, as ambitious in the game as they are daring in training methods. They do not stop inventing. A champion of race and laboratory that faces the crisis with patience and adapting to circumstances. Indoor work , with flamenco in the helmets to cheer up. «At home I can only do exercise bikes and some physical exercises. Weights with kilos of rice and no racket. Fortunately we have a little patio, "he says with a touch of relief.

Psychologist

After a few first days at a slower pace - which was set by his plan - it will accelerate, as much as possible, this week. His coaching staff have already sent him preparation plans and there will be no shortage of online sessions with his psychologist. «They will come better than ever, because mentally this is hard. You get up in the morning and think that you are living something unreal ». Have you been out on the street? «Only once to buy, and with gloves and a mask. Better stay home.

Most of its direct rivals are Asian or Indian, destinations where the impact of the Covid-19 is being overcome or the restrictions are less severe for athletes. "The Chinese team went to England to train when the crisis began at the beginning of the year, and now they have returned to their country, where things are normalizing," he explains before listing the badminton tournaments that have flown off the calendar. "March and April were months of much competition: Switzerland, India, Malaysia, the European championship ... And by May we should have focused on the Tokyo Games ...", nostalgically reviews the owner of the last gold olympic .

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  • Carolina Marin
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