The successes of Spanish men's sport in 2022

MADRID, 31 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The tennis players Rafa Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz, the pilots Toni Bou, Izan Guevara or Augusto Fernández, the canoeist Carlos Arévalo or the athletes Mohamed Katir or Mariano García are some of the most prominent names of this 2022 that left great international successes at the male level.

Undoubtedly, 2022 will once again be remembered for the Balearic tennis player Rafa Nadal, who entered the history books of this sport by already reaching 22 'Grand Slam' titles, the most at the male level, although still stalked by the Serbian Novak Djokovic, who is 21.

The man from Manacor had a year that began brilliantly, with 20 consecutive victories and the conquest of the Australian Open against the Russian Daniil Medvedev, before whom he signed a spectacular comeback when he had lost the first two sets and was down 3-2 and 0-40. to end up winning in more than five hours. Then, after a first stoppage due to injury, he was crowned again at Roland Garros for the fourteenth time against the Norwegian Casper Ruud, and would reach the Wimbledon semifinals, which he could not play against Nick Kyrgios due to an abdominal injury.

But Nadal was not alone because with him the young Carlos Alcaraz consolidated, who lived a 2022 full of joys crowned with his first 'Grand Slam', the US Open also against Casper Ruud, and the conquest of the world number one, the youngest in history to achieve it. In addition, he won the Masters 1,000 in Miami and Madrid, the Godó and the Rio de Janeiro tournament.

In addition, canoeing maintained its good line in recent years and reaped new successes. In the World Cup he won four gold medals thanks to Carlos Arévalo K-1 200, the K-4 500 (Arévalo, Saúl Craviotto, Rodrigo Germade and Marcus Walz), the C-2 500 of Cayetano García and Pablo Martínez, and the C-4 500 (Joan Moreno, Pablo Graña, Manuel Fontán and Adrián Sieiro), and the bronze of Paco Cubelos in K-1 5000.

In the European Championship, Adrián Sieiro and Joan Moreno were proclaimed champions in the C-2 500, and Cubelos and Íñigo Peña, in the K-2 1000, and together with Roi Rodríguez and Pedro Vázquez in the K-4 1000, Walter Bouzán, in K -1 5000, Pablo Graña, in C-1 200, and Sete Benavides and Toni Segura, in C-2 200, got silver medals. In addition, in the continental event of the slalom modality, Miquel Travé was bronze in C-1 and also by teams together with Ander Elosegi and Luis Fernández.

Athletics also enjoyed good health in 2022, especially with the two medals at the World Outdoor Championships in Eugene (United States) by Mohamed Katir in the 1,500m and by Asier García in the 110m hurdles. The Navarrese, in addition, was proclaimed European champion weeks later, while the one from Mula achieved a continental silver in the 5,000.

However, Mariano García from Murcia was able to win two golds in 800 meters, the world championship on the indoor track, and the continental one outdoors. In the European Championship, Spain achieved other successes such as the double gold for Álvaro Martín (20 km) and Miguel Ángel López (35 km), and the bronzes for Mario García Romo in 1,500, Diego García Carrera in 20 km and the team marathon formed by Ayad Lamdassem, Dani Mateo, Abdelaziz Merzougui, Yago Rojo and Jorge Blanco.

In motorsport, Carlos Sainz finally won his first Formula 1 Grand Prix, at Silverstone and with Ferrari, but the best successes came on two wheels with the world titles for Izan Guevara (Moto3), Augusto Fernández (Moto2) , Álvaro Bautista (Superbikes) and Álvaro Díaz (Supersport), and two more in trial for the unstoppable Toni Bou, who has already accumulated a total of 32.

In taekwondo, Daniel Quesada was world champion (-74), Ivan García European and world silver (-87), Joan Jorquera European and world bronze (-63), Jon Cintado world silver (-80), Javier Pérez Polo and Raúl Martínez won European silver (-68 and -87) and Adrián Vicente continental bronze (-58), while in judo Fran Garrigós was proclaimed European champion (-60), Alberto Gaitero runner-up (-66) and Niko Sherazadishvili won bronze in -100.

Karate contributed with Damián Quintero, silver in kata in the European and in the World Games, Babacar Seck, gold in the World Games in kumite 84, and Sergio Galán, Óscar García and Alejandro Manzana European silver in team kata; and boxing shone in the European Championship with the gold for Martín Molina (flyweight), the silvers for José Quiles (light), Emanuel Reyes (heavy) and Ayoub Ghadfa (super heavy), and the bronze for Adrián Thiam Creus (super light), and also at a professional level with Kiko Martínez, European featherweight champion.

In weightlifting, Marcos Ruiz achieved a historic World Cup silver in the snatch in -102 kilos, a success that he joined months before in the European Championship where he added a silver in the same modality, and two bronzes in two times and in the Olympic total. Josué Brachi and Andrés Mata were proclaimed runners-up in Europe at -55 and -81 respectively, and Acorán Hernández won bronze at -67.

Cycling had relevant successes such as David Valero's BTT world runner-up, Olympic bronze in 2021, Alejandro Martínez's bronze in the kilometer test at the Indoor World Cup, the continental bronze in omnium by Sebastián Mora, Eloi Palau, Alejandro Montalvo and Borja Conejos signed the triplet in the 20-inch elite category of the Trial World Championship, where Daniel Barón was silver in the 26-inch elite final.

Archery also joined this good run of success in 2022 where the Galician Miguel Alvariño became the European champion in the recurve bow modality. In addition, along with Pablo Acha and Daniel Castro, he was team silver.

Sailing did not miss its appointment with medals either, highlighting the European gold and world silver for the couple Florian Trittel and Diego Botín in the 49er class and the world and European silver for Jordi Xammar and Nora Brugman in 470, while Javier García and Jaime Canalejo and Rodrigo Conde and Aleix García shone in rowing with world silver and European bronze in two without a coxswain, and double silver in double sculls, respectively.

Alberto Ginés, Olympic climbing champion, remained on the podium in this 2022 with two bronzes (difficulty and combined) in the European, while gymnastics contributed the European bronze of Joel Plata in the high bar exercise, the gold in the Trampoline Gymnastics World Cup in double mini-trap by teams with David Franco, Carlos del Ser, Andrés Martínez and Nicolás Toribio, and Miquel Mañé's world runner-up in aerobic gymnastics.

Spain also shone at the World Skating Games with gold medals for Chevy Guzmán, Andreu Greses, Carlos Nelson and Pau García, and successes for Patxi Peula, Diego Poncelet, Llorenç Álvarez and Héctor Díez. In the Petanque World Cup, Jesús Escacho took the individual gold and Javier Cardenas, together with Sara Díaz, the silver.

In addition, there were also Mediterranean Games where Pablo Abián, Kike Peñalver, Levan Metreveli, Joel Plata, Gazi Khalidov, Fran Garrigós, Pablo Acha, Miguel Alvariño, Daniel Castro, Álvaro López San Martín, Carlos López Montagud, Álvaro Robles, Alfonso won medals. Urquiza, Niko Sherazadashvili, Tristani Mosakhlishvil, Mario Mollá, Carlos Quijada, Luis Domínguez, Miguel Martínez, Alex Castejón, Javier Pérez, Joel Rodríguez, Iñaki Bravo, Dani Rodríguez, Enrique Llopis, Marcos Ruiz, Adrián Vicente, Dani Quesada and Carlos Llavador.