Andrea Casalvolone: From Dominant Basketball Player to National Road Cycling Champion

To talk about Andrea Casalvolone is to remember one of the most dominant basketball players of the 90s in Costa Rica. With her height of 1.90 meters, she was a member of the University of Costa Rica quintet and Central American champion on several occasions.

However, an injury to her right knee forced her to retire prematurely, which led her to dedicate herself to mountain and road cycling, finding in this sport the discipline and determination necessary to achieve her goals.

At 44 years old, Casalvolone, current master player of the Cero Estrés team, fulfilled one of her great dreams by participating as a rookie in the Trimax Cycling -Vichima-Z Motors team in the Telecable Women’s Cycling Tour of Costa Rica 2023. She demonstrated great commitment when training and preparing for the challenge of completing the 340 kilometers divided into four stages.

“Cycling first gave me health. I had major knee injuries, and now thanks to cycling that is no longer a problem. Additionally, it gave me good friendships, discipline, and the opportunity to connect with many people. Being able to travel and compete internationally. Cycling is beautiful, it is wonderful. “It means everything to me,” Casalvolone confessed.

For more than 13 years she was active in basketball, participating in both the National Games of her youth and the UCR team. Even in 2013 she returned to the fields to reinforce the National Team in the Central American Games that were held in our country.

She never imagined that a decade later she would become National Road Cycling Champion in the Master C category and compete with the best cyclists in America.

“Being part of the Vuelta Femenina is like a dream come true. Being here is something I never imagined I would be in and that I set out to do. My intention was to participate last year, but due to various circumstances it was not possible because the Cycling Federation did not grant permits. But God does things at the perfect time, and this was my moment,” Casalvolone emphasized.

Andrea Casalvolone jokes when she confesses that many people do not remember that she played basketball in the first division of our country and her sons Sebastián and Alejandro Calderón are surprised when people ask them if they had seen her play. For them, her mother is passionate about cycling.

“I chose this sport for this moment in my life, and I was given the opportunity to practice it at a high performance level and assume the responsibility that the Costa Rican Cycling Federation gives us to compete. We prepared intensely because I knew I was going to face very talented girls who could be my daughters. That’s why I trained hard and with determination,” said Casalvolone.

Andrea Casalvolone played master basketball and went on a diet

For this year 2023, Andrea Casalvolone had the goal of participating in the Women’s Kibelix Tour and the Women’s Tour of Costa Rica.

For this reason, he not only began to process the documents so that his team could obtain the corresponding permits, but he also prepared himself physically to endure the four days of competition with extensive mountain routes, a time trial and finishing with a demanding circuit.

“Since January, I made the decision to prepare, regardless of whether I was going to be able to run the Women’s Vuelta or not. I was training in the gym, I went riding almost every day, I played basketball with my masters team and I took great care of my diet with the help of a nutritionist, who is a cyclist. From January to the start of the Vuelta, I lost 25 kilos,” Casalvolone proudly confessed.

The cyclist recalled that she had to fight against her weight all the time, as it went up and down constantly during her time as a basketball player. Even during her student days, she had to learn to live with his comments about her height and weight. Therefore, reaching an ideal weight to run the Master’s Tour was one of her great triumphs.

“You can’t imagine what it meant to me to have achieved it. They thought it was impossible, that those success stories were unattainable for me, because I have struggled with my weight all my life. “It shows the commitment I had as a cyclist to be able to lose weight and participate in the Women’s Tour weighing 80 kilos,” she added.

Andrea reflected for a moment and stated that beyond wanting things, one must fight to reach and achieve them.

“Everything begins with a decision. One can only wish, say ‘I would like’, ‘if I could’. But the day you decide and do it, that is the path that will lead you to success. The decision to say ‘it’s today and I’m going to start building that dream I have’. It must be built every day,” Casalvolone added.

“Things don’t happen overnight. This weight did not appear overnight. It was six months of strict exercise, a rigorous diet, putting in the work and sacrificing many things. But my dream was there and so was the decision. “Everything begins with a decision and one must keep it in mind every day they wake up,” she stressed.

The lawyer by profession stated that cycling is not an easy sport and that many things must be sacrificed to achieve goals, but achieving them is exciting and satisfying.

“You have to like cycling, that’s the key to everything. Because one is not always motivated, one does not always want to go to train. Sometimes you get lazy, sometimes you want to eat more, have your peccadilloes. You get lazy, you don’t want to continue with the discipline, getting up early every day and saying ‘this is my priority and I have to do it,’” Casalvolone acknowledged.

“Health comes first and cycling gives you that opportunity. Furthermore, it is the example that I have to give to my children. Thank God, they are athletes and not because I told them so, but because they saw me every day. “They saw it and assumed it as their own reality,” he stated.

2023-10-16 20:24:18
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