Balancing Motherhood and Elite Sports: A Surmountable Challenge

An elite athlete shares her experience on how motherhood can coexist with a high-performance sports career, despite the obstacles.

Generic image of an athlete running on a track, with feet in the foreground and a blurred background.
IA

Generic image of an athlete running on a track, with feet in the foreground and a blurred background.

A renowned elite athlete has advocated for the feasibility of balancing motherhood and professional sports, despite the numerous physical and personal obstacles that must be overcome along the way.

The journey of this athlete, coach, and journalist has been marked by constant personal improvement. Her presentation, titled Passion, was the first at the Nit de la Dona (Women's Night), an event organized at the Hotel Carlemany in Girona.
Her sports career began with alpine skiing at the age of six, solidifying at 13 when she moved to France. However, a chronic knee injury at 18 interrupted her progress. After four years of rehabilitation and university studies, she found a new path in running to stay active and competitive, transitioning from amateur to elite, participating in European and world championships.

"The game became my profession."

the speaker
Motherhood represented one of her major life projects, initially causing doubts due to the societal perception that an elite sports career would end. Despite this, she decided to become a mother and stated that this period coincided with "the best years" of her professional and athletic career. A second motherhood, however, brought health problems and a loss of physical and psychological confidence, though she continued training with determination.

"I am aware of my situation, but I have chosen to be a mother and continue competing. Perhaps I will not achieve success in the same way as others, but I continue to work with discipline."

the speaker
The athlete emphasized that motherhood and professional performance are not incompatible, asserting that "the best vital moment to grow can also be the best moment for performance".