2016 comes to an end. A year that began for me with the hope of fulfilling a dream – taking part for the second time in the Paralympic Games but which ended with the disappointment of not being able to fulfill that dream . However ,I am sure in the knowledge that everything I have lived through has has made me grow immensely in every way.
Sportswise, despite not going to Rio, 2016 has been positive- three times champion of Spain, double medal holder in the European Championships and, for the fourth consecutive year, I have finished in the top 10 in the world ranking. The fact of not going to the Games has been one of the bitterest disappointments in my sporting career, especially after proving that I was more than able to hold my own among the top athletes in my event, if only they had decided to take me. After Rio, we decided that I should return to my roots – the 100 and 200 metres, with the aim of being in the next World Championships which will be held in London in July 2017, again competing against the very best in the world.
In my private life, it has been a tremendously intense year, with many projects, initiatives and ideas that have made me grow and mature enormously. As for present and future projects, some of them are already under development and others pending some slight alterations. Most of them are focused on two sectors: the education sector – where I must mention the project «Students have their say», which began in the last weeks of 2016 and in 2017 will be back again but this time even stronger. The other area I will be involved in is the disability sector, where I am developing a project with the aim of putting adaptive sports in Murcia on the map. It’s a project in which I hope to focus on in the medium and long term future , making the most of my experience, knowledge and the amazing moments I have lived through in sport at a World Class level . My aim is to develop initiatives at a regional level for athletes who have some form of disability.
My philosophy is that the essence of life is to have more projects than memories, a beautiful phrase in a book by Risto Mejide and one which I try to live by. That is why, despite the fact that many of these projects may not end as I always want them to, I will never cease trying to get them off the ground- projects which excite me, ones which I consider necessary, or simply those that provide me with something positive.
Therefore, 2017 comes to me full of challenges, projects and hope.
As for competing, the challenge of taking part in the World Championship fills me with enormous excitement. To try to achieve this, this year I have returned to the club where I started out , AD San Javier; And with the invaluable support of UCAM, the General Directorate of Sports together with the rest of my sponsors, we are already preparing for this challenge.
In addition, the new year begins with the premiere of «Students have their say» in a bilingual format, with various conferences and events to be organised and, above all, hundreds of experiences to be lived.
A new year begins, a new page in the book of my life.