Carolina Marín: "Now I can say that I enjoy playing badminton again"

   MADRID, 8 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Huelva badminton player Carolina Marín confessed this Wednesday that "now", almost two years after her serious knee injury that prevented her from being at the Tokyo Games, she can say that she is "enjoying playing" her discipline again, with the "gold medal goal" set already for Paris 2024.

"The motivation keeps coming out because I am very stubborn. Breaking my knee made me think that Tokyo was not for me, and I thought that there were only three years left for the next ones. The sensations are very good, better than last year, because I have spent a A complicated year and a half. The knee hasn't let me demand what I want, but that changed in December last year. Now I can say that I'm enjoying playing badminton again", he celebrated at the renewal of his collaboration agreement with The league.

The 2016 Olympic champion, three-time world gold medalist and five-time continental champion commented that her knee injury in June 2021 also "made her grow", so she sees herself "very capable of being very competitive between now and the Games ". "And above all, the goal is to get that gold, it's very clear," she said.

"I think of all the tournaments that I have before, I have a year and a half with a world circuit that has increased. I focus more on the short term, but when we focus on the Games, all the preparation will be directed towards them. The preparation of the last five weeks has been very positive", said the Huelva.

On whether she sees herself as a benchmark in Spanish sports, Carolina Marín admitted that she is "proud" when she sees that "children want to practice badminton" for her. "I saw that when I was 13 years old when I went to China, and I see that in Spain now. That's why I feel very proud," she reiterated.

The athlete praised Pau Gasol as "a great example" after his '16 was withdrawn by the Los Angeles Lakers. "It is a memorable and very beautiful gesture, he deserves it like the most," she assured, before reflecting on Rafa Nadal, his "inspiration" as a tennis player and person.

"Although any woman in any field of sport can inspire me, because we make an extra effort, like when you want to be a mother and your career has to end sooner. Women are growing a lot, we get involved and work hard to achieve any goal that we propose", she stressed on International Women's Day.

Marín applauded that the role of women in the sports industry "is growing and in a very positive way." "We have obtained many medals in the last Games. We must reach a point of equality sooner than later, that we talk about sport and not about women and men," she warned on the occasion of '8M'.

"We are on the right track, although there is still a long way to go, hopefully it will shorten over time. There is still a lot of work to be done in terms of visibility, the media, support. And above all, that sponsors support women athletes," he concluded.