Angela Mora

responds shyly.

She is barely a teenager and these days she has monopolized the spotlight of the national gymnastics.

She is a pioneer, the first gymnast with Down syndrome to have participated in the Spanish National Base Artistic Championship.

A milestone that fills her with pride, although she would like to be just the first of many.


With each movement he fell in love with the Navarra Arena, which ended up dedicating a thunderous applause to him. "I felt very good and very happy," confesses this young athlete who, at 17 years old, already broke down a first barrier in 2019 with her participation in the Catalan Cup and who has its great reference in the current champion of Spain,

Nicolau Mir

. Of all the devices, the one that gives you the most difficulties is the bar. But there is nothing that can with his perseverance.


"Working with her is very gratifying. She is very grateful and very fighter. If an element does not come out, she repeats it over and over again until she succeeds," reveals

Maribel Moncasi

, the coach of this young gymnast from Lleida, who competes for the Gimnàstic FEDAC Club. "She is shy, hard-working and very nice. With her smile, she conquers people," she says about her ward, with whom she has been working for the past seven years. The applause of the pavilion, of course, he also experienced it in a very special way.


"I was excited, honestly. It was very emotional. First, she did the jumping exercise, and

as the competition progressed, people followed her more

. The truth is that both coaches and judges, such as the Spanish Gymnastics Federation, They welcomed her super well. When I hugged her, I thought 'objective achieved, one more step towards integration' and I said

'Look, Angela, we are here, we have done it, we have achieved it,'

"she explains. This 2 is just the most recent step on a journey that began long ago.


"We have evolved. I had never considered that everything that is happening now would happen. I started with another girl and she, participating in the Special Olympics.

I was in the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Barcelona, ​​in 1992, and I always I was very excited to work with girls with disabilities

. I saw the opportunity, I called Special Olympics so they could start going and they started competing, "says the coach.


"Rated as one more gymnast"


"Three years ago I asked the Catalan Gymnastics Federation. At first they saw it a bit complicated, they were a little afraid of the reaction of the people. We started in a lower category, in schoolchildren, and this season, as Angela has gone learning more, she has evolved, I took her on the basis.

When we saw that she was doing the exercises, we asked the Spanish Federation for authorization. They told us that yes, there was no problem, but on the condition that she would score as a gymnast more, that it would not have any special treatment.

And that, after all, is what we were looking for. What we want is inclusion, "he says. "Her grades are deserved. Nobody has helped her," he emphasizes.


For Moncasi, that, precisely, is the most important thing. "You have to give a twist to all this. These children can do gymnastics, or any sport. They can do everything," he insists. "In some element he can have some fear, but like any gymnast. You are already looking for exercises or elements that they can do. It is the same for everyone.

I will not put a gymnast to do a somersault when he has not done a somersault yet. Everything needs to be done. their progression, until they reach the final goal

. You can't start the house from the roof, because that's when they get scared or hurt themselves.

If they have a physical preparation and are making their progressions, they can do any element,

"he reiterates.


In his opinion, now it is necessary to take another step, so that young athletes like Angela can continue to be linked to the world of sports even when their stage as competitors comes to an end.

"

My hope is that, tomorrow, these gymnasts can stay in the club as coaches. Obviously, not at a professional level, but they can be sports educators, in

whatever

specialty they have

. That is what I would like to achieve later" , he assures.

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