“I have won a medal that I never imagined could be won in my life”

It still hurts to see those images of Carolina Marín crying inconsolably in the badminton semi-finals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. In that match the Spanish player was very few points away from going to the final and securing one more medal for Spain and the second in his record after gold in Rio 2016. However, poor support caused the ligaments in his right knee to tear.

That moment when he fell to the ground in pain and his coach, Fernando Rivas, I tried to console him, it was a scene that hurt all of us Spaniards who were glued to the television.

And bad luck seems to be pursuing the Andalusian athlete who, after becoming Olympic champion in 2016 He has suffered three serious knee injuries. The first in 2019 when it broke anterior cruciate ligament of the right knee. Once recovered two months after the Tokyo games He suffered a rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and a tear of the internal and external meniscus.. And when everything bad seemed to have happened, the anterior cruciate in his right knee was torn again at the aforementioned meeting in Paris 2024

However, when yesterday I received the Princess of Asturias Sports Awardall those tears of Carolina, and of all those who suffered with her, became applause and thanks for an athlete who doesn’t know what it means to give up.

And Carolina Marín spoke about all these expressions of gratitude in an interview with the SER Chain: “People give you a lot of love and warmth these days. It has all been very nice. It is clear that the pain I had, nothing and no one can cure, but at the end of the day all these things push you a little,” he said.

“I was going to Paris with the goal of getting my second gold medal. And I have won a medal that I never imagined could be won in my life.which is way better than any medal I’ve ever won, which is the love and affection of all of Spain. I carry that medal in my heart and no one can take it away from me.”confessed a proud Carolina Marín who has earned the esteem of all of Spain.

It still hurts to see those images of Carolina Marín crying inconsolably in the badminton semi-finals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. In that match the Spanish player was very few points away from going to the final and securing one more medal for Spain and the second in his record after gold in Rio 2016. However, poor support caused the ligaments in his right knee to tear.