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Fernando Rivas announced a month and a half ago that he was disassociating himself from the Spanish Badminton Federation, where he arrived in 2004 and became, among others, the Carolina Marín’s coach, with whom she has reached infinity and beyond: three times world champion, five times in Europe and Olympic gold at the Rio Games. “I will continue to be his coach, regardless of the new career path he takes. Together we began a process years ago that has not ended. We have shown many times that limits do not exist and we want to do so once again”, explained Rivas. That new path already knows what it is: will be the new coach of the French Badminton Federation. His specific position is “Senior Manager” and he has signed a contract for two and a half years, until August 31, 2024. “The attraction has been mainly the desire to apply a methodology that is known to have worked to a structure. Especially the fact of being able to have a six-year goal, not only for Paris 2024, but also Los Angeles 2028. We have about 25 people who are going to have a common project. It has caught me in a moment of need for change”, affirms Rivas. “Carolina will not lack for anything and that is one of the things I asked for to accept this position”, he explained about how he is going to make his work compatible. “We are already making the time that I am going to spend in France compatible, my contract is part-time, I will do a lot of work from home. When she’s not here, she’s going to be taken care of perfectly.”
Happy to announce my incorporation to the @FFBaDwhich I will be able to combine with my position as Head Coach of the Carolina Marín team
Happy to announce my incorporation to the @FFBaD team, which I will be able to combine with my current role as Carolina Marín Head Coach
Go on! ???????? pic.twitter.com/2pqvrR860p
– Fernando Rivas (@fernandorivas55) March 9, 2022
Fernando Rivas thanked the Spanish Federation in his note a month and a half ago for trusting in 2004 in a “young and enthusiastic coach the task of directing the CAR”. Many say that it is a miracle that a Spanish woman is champion of everything in a sport without tradition in this country such as badminton, but Rivas analyzes the “no miracle”. It’s more like work. “Since Carolina arrives in Madrid, she is created an environment that allows her to develop her full potential. Despite the difficulties of not having a tradition, as a coach there was a moment when I changed my mentality, when I went to my first Games I said: ‘I want to be there, in a final’. And then I thought about what I can offer as a coach that someone else can’t. I’m not a Chinese coach, I don’t have a Chinese or an Indonesian one; I am Spanish, this is my baggage, my knowledge, so what do I need? It was a very thoughtful process that changed my life and I focused everything on my professional improvement… The raw material was there, you can’t get that with just anyone”.
Now he is going to have to do another reflection to try to apply his knowledge in France, despite the fact that in recent years he has had offers from other leading countries in badminton. The jump, however, is important. “There are more players here, a greater badminton culture, the training is more developed, there are more coaches… With my grain of sand, we can make the system much more efficient and that will translate into being able to win medals in the future.”, affirmed the Spanish coach. “France is a power at junior level. We want to develop that level and achieve good results not only in the Olympic Games”, he continued.
With Carolina Marín he started when he was 14 years old and they grew up together. She is now going to test the method with older athletes. “She was able to adapt to the one I had. I believe that the method will continue to be very valid, I understand it is not something that I am going to impose, but rather it is something that we are going to co-create. My thing is going to be to support the coaches”, concluded Fernando Rivas.
