Last November Sabadell lost a league match. Outside of its context it seems like an everyday, inconsequential event, but it was an exceptional, historical event. The team has been dominating women's water polo since 2010, without allowing any league defeat since then - 241 consecutive victories -, also adding five European Cups in that period. It was the current Dream Team of Spanish sport, but Mataró, with Anni Espar as a benchmark, a former Sabadell, ended his streak. Since then the league was preparing for the best playoff in its history. A duel between the champion of everything and a determined aspirant, a challenge that would involve colleagues, friends and, of course, already enemies.

But the coronavirus arrived. And the title was not decided in the pool, with goals and blows. It was decided in a video call between the presidents of the clubs. El Mataró, champion. For the first time in its history. And after nine consecutive titles from Sabadell.

«We are left with a bittersweet, almost bitter flavor. There was some joy after the meeting of presidents, I am not lying to you, but we have not celebrated it because the Federation must still ratify the decision. It is all very strange. We have won the title and it is very important for the club, but we have the feeling that it will be tarnished and that we could have won it in the pool, that we still had much more to prove ", admits Helena Lloret , a Mataró player, also a former Sabadell player , which sums up the feelings of many athletes who in recent days have received one of the best news of their careers, who are league champions, in one of the worst places, confined at home without being able to play, without being able to hug their companions.

Beyond soccer and men's basketball, the only sports with enough money to return to competition - or at least try - handball, water polo, rugby, field hockey and other team disciplines have had to lower their shutter of all its competitions abruptly with decided classifications in the offices and controversial, multiple controversies.

A family decision

In rugby, for example, it was agreed that the champion would be the VRAC Quesos Entrepinares de Valladolid ahead of SilverStorm El Salvador, also from Valladolid, although both teams only had two points - that is, a draw - and they still had left a direct matchup in the regular league and the entire playoff. The fact that 'Pacote' Blanco , formerly of Cheese and former international, was part of the commission of the Spanish Rugby Federation that decided the title, created some controversies. His brother Alberto , Pilier del Quesos, on the other hand, assures that his intention was the opposite: «My brother is very fair. I'm sure he preferred another team to be first in the standings so there would be no rumors. ”

«The truth is that El Salvador has a great team and perhaps they had speculated more than us in the regular league, but I consider the title an award for consistency. I feel that we are not champions, that we are half champions. We found out about the Federation's decision around 12 at night and most of our companions were already asleep. Some of us connected by video call and had a few beers, but we are not going to celebrate it any more. We are not in the mood, "says Alberto Blanco, who like all interviewees has suffered an ERTE from his club and like all interviewees will experience the most atypical summer of his life. You will be without playing your sport from March to September at least.

An empty summer

«It is rare to be without activity so suddenly. I don't remember when I had such a summer, maybe when I was very young, but since my adolescence my summers had been training with the national team and going to world championships ”, Silvia Arderius explains after two repressed joys in a few months. At the end of last year, she reached the final of the Women's Handball World Cup with the Spanish team, but lost it to the Netherlands in a controversial outcome. And last week she was proclaimed league champion with Bera Bera, but she did it at around 10 pm, after a lengthy meeting of the Spanish Handball Federation.

The usual celebration of the club, a meal in a restaurant of San Sebastián level, this time will not be. The only consolation was a video call by Zoom where the best moments of the season were reviewed and beers, wine and even champagne were opened. All the players, in fact, are already at home, in various parts of Spain, in Brazil and in Argentina, and the difficult thing for them now will be to keep in shape for so many months. Although at least they have already received a certain reward.

An ownerless title

Others have been left without it. Because, although almost all sports have given the title to the team that was leading before the break due to the pandemic, there is one who has decided to take another path. It is field hockey. Atlètic Terrassa was the first, but will not be champion. All the leagues of the Spanish Hockey Federation will be deserted and there will be no declines either, so next year the teams in competition will go from 10 to 12. «We expected that they would give us the title because in almost all sports they were doing so , they were proclaiming champion to the leader, but we do not want to give him more laps. It has been a rare, difficult year, and we have done the best we can. It is done. We have the consolation of having obtained the place to go to Europe, which is very important for the club, ”says Marc Sallés , a reference for Atlètic and the national team.

Like the rest of the interviewees, he hopes that the pandemic will be under control to regain some normality, in his case raising his shared-cost bus travel start-up. Like the rest of the interviewees, he hopes that the pandemic is under control so that, the following season, he can play the league on the field - or inside the pool - and try to enjoy a full celebration.

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