They say that Novak Djokovic He began by hitting the wall of the bunker in which he took refuge as a child in his native Serbia. When he began to climb in the world of professional tennis, his volcanic style on the court was also reflected in his bad loss and it was common to see him finish a match in rage if things had not turned out as he expected.
In 2012 something happened in his life that transformed him forever: he was doing better and better in the world of tennis and hugged his adversaries when a match was over, he even posed for the cameras with a card with the shape of a heart and the message “Love and peace.” Serbian
In anger he had become a true pacifist.
The person responsible for the transformation of the athlete was the Riojan Pepe Imaz (Arnedo, 1974), a kind of spiritual guide who in his youth became number 176 in the world. Today he runs a tennis and motivation club in Marbella and, in addition to Djokovic, has advised high-level tennis players such as Feliciano lopez. In his day, the media pointed to Imaz as the person responsible for Boris Becker ceasing to be Djokovic’s coach, a controversy that Imaz has always been uncomfortable with.
His name has come to the fore again after the uncertainty generated about the tennis player’s participation in the first Grand Slam of the year. Djokovic had already been reluctant to be vaccinated for months and now there are those who see a relationship between his skeptical position with the Covid and that mystical side that Imaz instilled in him. “Personally, I am opposed to vaccination and would not want to be forced by someone to vaccinate me in order to travel,” said the number 1 in the world of tennis in summer. “I’ve always been interested in human metabolism and being in the best possible shape to fight the virus.”
In recent days, it has been published that the Serbian would have passed through Marbella at the end of December. It was precisely there where he came into contact with Pepe Imaz, who these days has been overwhelmed by calls from Spanish journalists.
‘Coach’ of legends
“Good morning full of joy and happiness.” That is the first answer that the Riojan gives to this newspaper when asking about his professional and personal relationship with the tennis legend. Imaz responds one day after leaving the message. According to journalists who know him from other times, this ‘coach’ can go days without answering messages and without giving signs of life. It disconnects from the madding crowd to get connected with himself. But he is also extremely affectionate with the press, to such an extent that he usually ends interviews with hugs of more than 25 seconds. Those of 24 are not, in their opinion, for real. “An infinite hug full of respect, affection, love & peace”, he writes, to make it clear that “in these sensitive moments for someone as close as Novak, I prefer not to say anything”.
However, yesterday at noon he changed his mind and decided to send the media a message explaining who he was and what was his relationship with Novak, which is always referred to by his first name.
In the 50-minute video, he appears dressed in a pristine white tracksuit with the golden letters “Love and Peace”, the same motto occupying a large part of the wall in the background. «I jump. I hit the button. In the air and without a net. I don’t want to hit the ‘stop’. I’m not here for me. I am an ordinary person. What makes me feel is that on a professional and personal level I have a relationship with a person who she is extraordinary as a character, for what it does. That’s Novak. These days something has exploded towards me, due to my closeness to him. That is why I am sharing this. In the heart there is no fear, there is truth. People are talking and judging who I am, this Pepe Imaz. What he does and what he has done with Novak. Have you eaten your head? It has been said that I do have a sect ».
Imaz repeats ad nauseam that “he is a divine and wonderful being, with his divine and wonderful imperfections.” He says that when he was a kid, the pressure of the world of professional tennis made him obsess over success and he ended up suffering a long and deep depression until one day “it was as if lightning struck me on the head.” Suddenly, “the answer was love, love and love, and then I felt infinite well-being.” That is the saving philosophy he shared with the Serbian tennis player, whom he also considers “a divine and wonderful being with his divine and wonderful shortcomings.”
He assures that “I never tell Novak or anyone else what to do, because it would be to believe that I have the truth and he does not.” She defines him as a good, empathetic, simple and humble person, “not one hundred percent, but more than the average. Is someone with strength and personality, something that is also seen on the track ». Regarding his attitude close to denialism, he claims that «Novak questions things, he is like the student who in class did not stop asking questions, who interrupted the teacher. Study in depth what interests you. Novak, neither by me, nor by anyone, is going to let himself be directed. There are many times when I think differently from him, he has his perception of things “, the Riojan ditch in an intervention that seems that of a spiritual ‘youtuber’.
Imaz says that he is not anyone’s teacher nor has he ever looked for him and considers himself “a student.” But nevertheless, Luis Santamaria, a researcher at the Ibero-American Network for the Study of Sects, has a very different opinion: «I am clear that we are faced with an esoteric type of teaching, with an easy and very dangerous sectarian drift, which can become fanatic to some of its followers by manipulating their understanding of reality.
Santamaría made a few days ago statements about Pepe Imaz’s profile in the media and assures that “after my intervention in a television program talking about his mystical profile, in quotation marks, I have received calls from people who are not tennis players asking me for explanations. People very upset by my statements, which confirms to me that beyond the people who train, the Rioja has followers, with followers. We are before a guru with great influence among those who follow his ideas, ready to defend them tooth and nail.
Respected or questioned?
All the people close to Imaz that ABC has contacted agree that he is “a great person.” This is confirmed Nacho Saracho, with which the former tennis player begins to work when he arrives in Marbella. «He started at the Alcántara Tennis Club, which at that time I was directing. He is a great professional with his methods, which may seem better or worse to some. He has been at this for many years and has been one of the best Spanish tennis players in lower categories. They are making us think that Pepe is part of a sect and that he is a smoke seller and a madman, but the truth is that no one had questioned his achievements until the controversy with Djokovic broke out. The sector appreciates him and is fond of him ”, says this man from Marbella.
From the Tennis Brothers club, in the same city, they are suspicious of the unorthodox way that Imaz uses to train: “I respect the use of those techniques related to Buddhism, perhaps Djokovic could help him improve, but I am rather skeptical». In the Puente Romano hotel complex, where the Imaz club is located, they prefer to keep quiet. He says goodbye with an infinite hug, lasting more than 25 seconds.
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