The Spanish swimmer emigrated to the United States to be one of the best sprinters in the world: “In Paris I hope to improve on sixth place in Tokyo”
PARIS, 3 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish swimmer Hugo González de Oliveira, European champion in Budapest'21 in the 200 medley and a diploma -sixth- in the 100 backstroke at the Tokyo 2020 Games, lamented that in Spain he has been training “in the same way for a long time”, and He justified his move to the United States to become one of the best sprinters in the world.
“I think we have been training in Spain in the same way for a long time. It is true that there is a group of coaches who want to change the method, for example mine at Canoe. And in the end, if my coach does not charge 'two thousand per month' it is difficult for me to have the resources to help me achieve big goals,” he stressed in an interview with Europa Press in Paris, where he traveled as one of the ambassadors of Iberia's 'Talent on board' program.
Son of a Spaniard and a Brazilian mother, Hugo González emigrated to the United States to train alongside the Spanish Sergi López, bronze in Seoul '88, and rub shoulders with swimmers such as Ryan Murphy, Nathan Adrian or Ryan Hoffer to raise his level and achieve three medals ( gold, silver and bronze) in the 2021 Budapest European Championship, and the Olympic final in the same year at the Games.
“Is it necessary to emigrate to the United States? In my opinion, yes. Either it is supported academically or economically, but without either of the two it is difficult to reach the same level that other countries outside can have,” said the Spaniard, who until the age of 18 He trained in the pool at the High Performance Center (CAR) in Madrid.
In his opinion, the burden that many national athletes have is the difficulty of being able to combine studies and long training sessions. “In the United States, it is a different program, less professional when you are younger, but that also allows you to develop until your 'twenties' instead of deciding when you finish high school,” he compared.
The results in Spanish swimming are, according to him, a matter of cycles. “When we had a very good period of swimming at the Spanish level, I don't know if I was starting to do my first Spanish Championship. But I believe that, in the same way that everything progresses, in each Olympic cycle there has to be some change,” he explained. .
With the season halfway over, González confessed that he still does not feel the excitement of Paris 2024 on his skin. “If I'm honest, I don't think about the Games until the season arrives. For me, the journey has just begun. Now the “My main objective is to continue preparing and be in the best possible shape for when the Games arrive and to continue improving. I am very eager, excited and with the ambition to obtain better results both in World Cups and in past Games,” he said.
“THERE IS MORE APPROVAL FOR FONDISTS”
Just like Rafa Muñoz, former world record holder in the 50 butterfly, and Martín López Zubero, Olympic champion in Barcelona '92, were in his day, Hugo is a 'rara avis' in Spanish swimming, more marked by long-distance successes such as the incombustible Mireia Belmonte.
“It's a bit more of a cultural issue. In general, perhaps there is a bit more of a feeling of approval towards the longer events. Our level has normally been better in long-distance events, in the 1,500, 400 and 200 freestyle, than in the 50m. and 100. We have to take experience from countries that do things well in the water and try to apply it in Spain,” he suggested.
Regarding the predictions he makes for Paris 2024, González “more swimmers with the possibility of qualifying.” “Carlos Garach and Arbidel (González) have already swam below the minimum mark. We have a group of swimmers who can qualify, including the relay. I don't know, I can't make an exact prediction, but I think it will be much more positive than in Tokyo or Rio,” he said.
On a personal level, the computer engineer from the University of California at Berkeley warned that having been a finalist in Tokyo 2020 “does not guarantee” repeating it this year. “We are going to go step by step, we want to go to the final and the objective is, once there, to be able to reach 100% and compete at the level of personal bests. Not just being sixth, we want something more,” he said .
To do this, he will have the support of his family in France, although he does not think about whether the Paris Games will be historic Games, in the case of beating the 22 medals of Barcelona'92, for the national delegation.
“I didn't pay attention to what we did in '92. 22 medals? It could be, it could be. I know that all of us here at 'Talent on Board' of Iberia are excited to fight for medals and, if we don't fight for them , of course at the end. So the option is always there. It's not crazy that we try to go for it,” he commented, with the Eiffel Tower in the background as witness to his forecast.