The nerves before a World Championship are disguised as bets. Before arriving in Tokyo, María Pérez promised her best friend in race walking, the Italian Antonella Palmisano, that if she came back home with two medals, she would grow her hair long. Now it's time to fulfill that promise. "No choice! But I like it short. Maybe I'll get used to it and won't cut it again," she comments to EL MUNDO hours before leaving for vacation.
After the Olympic Games in Paris, she spent days and days attending to institutions, sponsors, and media, but now she needs to disconnect. "I want to be with myself. I bought the tickets in June because I already felt that need. I'm going far away, I need to distance myself. I'll see monuments, do sightseeing, but above all, I'll be at the beach," she rejoices.
What do you miss the most when preparing for a World Championship?
My family. When I return from vacation, I will spend as much time as possible with them because I miss them a lot. Sometimes they travel to see me, but now they are saving themselves for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. My father works in the town's waste management, and my mother takes care of my great-grandmother, who had a scare in August: she had a stroke. Perhaps the worst part of athletics is that it is a solitary sport. I spend a lot of time alone, but it is also the life I have chosen.
Fortunate to have friends like Palmisano.
It's a blessing. When we are in training camp or at a competition, she is my family. At the start of the 20-kilometer race, I told her, "Anto, having you by my side makes me feel calmer." I want to make it clear that I suffer from being away from home for long periods; there are many things that are not seen, but I also know that with my suffering, I make many people happy. I am proud to bring two more medals to Spain.
You mention feeling more mature. In what ways do you notice it?
Now I know that there is another beautiful life outside of sports. That helps me. I have learned this with age and experience. That's why I always say that this is my last Olympic cycle, that I want to be a mother, that I am eager to experience other things.
You used to demand too much of yourself.
Absolutely. Before the 2023 Budapest World Championships, I put a lot of pressure on myself, constantly telling myself that I needed another medal. Now I approach it in a very different way. I have achieved everything I wanted, and now I simply enjoy athletics. The challenge is to maintain motivation, but I do so by changing my training location, adding more people to my group...
Paul McGrath, who won the bronze, says he has taken up cycling. What about you?
Paddle tennis. I go play with friends after training, and it helps me unwind. I love the post-match chats. I don't drink alcohol, but I have my Aquarius, and each one tells me about their life. When I listen to them, I think that mine isn't so bad either.
You are the only woman to have achieved two doubles in a World Championship, with only three men having done so: Usain Bolt, Carl Lewis, and Mo Farah. Do you think that, being a racewalker, you don't get the recognition you deserve?
Yes, I believe so. Racewalkers do not receive the visibility that track athletes do; not all TVs are tuned to us. The blame lies with the leaders who do not put us in the spotlight. Racewalking is the ugly duckling of athletics. I don't particularly like fame; I do this because I love it, but if we were valued more, many things would change, such as sponsorships.
What can be done to change this?
I don't know. As I always say, I am a girl from a village [Orce], living in a small city [Granada], pursuing my dreams. I will do what I can, but the future of racewalking does not depend solely on the athletes. The International Olympic Committee must come together, listen to all parties, and reflect on racewalking once and for all.
Aside from the fight for racewalking, would you use your platform to advocate for, for example, LGBTQ+ rights?
I am not one to advocate. When I don't like something, I say it, even if I may be wrong. But I believe that sexuality should be treated naturally. One does not choose who they love: gender, race, or culture doesn't matter. Love does not understand those things. We should not judge. I am single now, but when I have fallen in love, it has always been with the person, regardless of gender. We should be natural, even if it's difficult for some.
Ana Peleteiro called you out on social media the other day.She asked her teammates in the Spanish national team to "speak out for a free Palestine.".
I can't comment; I haven't seen anything. I was in Tokyo for 17 days without social media, without reading the news. I don't like bad things happening in the world, but I can't comment because I don't know.