The sailor Támara Echegoyen and the paddler Marcus Cooper were excited to be the flag bearers of the Spanish delegation at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games this Friday, something that gives the Galician “an extra dose of motivation” and a “symbolically powerful” moment for the Balearic.
“It is very difficult for me to describe the emotions, but I think that for both of us it is an honour and a pride to lead this great team, this Spanish delegation, and to start competing in Paris 2024. It is an opportunity to enjoy in a different way the start of the Olympic Games, which for me already have a golden clasp,” he said at a press conference held together with the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) a few hours before parading in a different ceremony because it will be on the River Seine and not in a stadium.
The Galician, Olympic champion in London 2012 together with Sofia Toro and Angela Pumariega, knows that it will be a “special” parade, as it will be held outside the Olympic Stadium, although she still does not know the details, and believes that carrying the flag will be “an extra dose of motivation” for the competition. “It is true that being the flag bearer is for sporting merits, it is something that we have already achieved. Sportsmen are so focused on the next objective that we forget who we are, and our CV also describes us. I think it is an extra dose of motivation,” she said.
“I slept well. Thursday was a pretty tough day for Paula and me, we had the measurement that is necessary before facing the races. It was a long day of work and we also had a session in the water, so I couldn’t wait to get to bed and I made the most of it,” he joked.
Regarding the competition, in which she will be paired with Paula Barceló in 49er FX, she assured that they are “prepared” to fight for the medals. “The feeling, both Paula’s and mine, is that we have done a good sporting job. We are very calm about the work we have done and, above all, we are eager to face the challenge,” she stressed.
“It’s going to be a very close competition. The conditions in Marseille will open up the list of countries with a chance of winning a medal, but I think Paula and I are ready to fight. We’re really looking forward to giving our best in the water and, above all, to showing who we are and the level we have,” continued Echegoyen, who downplayed the rain forecast. “I have checked the forecast, it’s already raining, it seems to be early, maybe we’ll get lucky and it’ll stop sooner,” he concluded.
Cooper gets very little sleep because he is “too excited”
For his part, the paddler Marcus Cooper admitted that he had not been able to “sleep as well as he should have” because he was “too excited” about what he was going to experience this Friday, when he will carry the Spanish flag alongside the sailor Támara Echegoyen, a moment that means “a mixture of emotions” for the two-time Olympic medallist.
The two-time Olympic medallist, who regretted not having family present at the ceremony, although they will be gathered at his home to see him, added that he went to bed late on Thursday and even woke up “before the alarm clock.”
For the Balearic, “it is a mixture of emotions” because of “how symbolically powerful it is to represent not only 383 athletes, but also 48 million Spaniards in a ceremony of such special calibre.” “I have been feeling the ‘bug’ for days now, although I am quite calm and I try to train day by day to better manage the emotion, but it is getting worse,” he acknowledged.
He also confessed that his mother, whom he described as his “number one fan”, had already called him on Thursday to tell him to enjoy himself, and that they would all be watching the ceremony, “giving him lots of encouragement and enjoying it” with him.
BLANCO: “ENJOY A MAGICAL AFTERNOON”
Finally, the president of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), Alejandro Blanco, celebrated having “the best Olympic team” and “the best standard-bearers” to represent “the best country in the world, which is Spain.”
“You are standard-bearers because you have won it for your career, for your values, for what you represent for sport but also for what you represent for Spain,” said the leader, who wished both of them “the best” and that they enjoy a “magical afternoon.”
“And from there, enjoy the competition because both of us and your colleagues in the respective sports and the 383 of us come with all the expectations to have great results. I thank you from the bottom of my heart, I congratulate you and I really enjoy this magical moment because you are going to go ahead leading the best team we can have. Good luck today, good luck on the days of competition,” said Blanco.