Marta García has had an excellent outdoor season, with the Palencian claiming her second consecutive victory in the 5,000m test at the Spanish Championships on 29 July. Despite meeting the competition requirements, the athlete from Palencia will not participate in the World Cup in Budapest from August 19-27 because she did not meet the criteria set by the Spanish Athletics Federation for participation in the event. This decision caused a lot of controversy because it left out many athletes who participated in this year’s summer events (such as Óscar Husillos, who will also not compete in the 400m individual event). Marta Garcia’s best time of the season is 15:17.10, which puts her 21st in the outdoor world athletics rankings this season. The woman from Palencia has proven her level and competitiveness this year (she finished 10th in European Indoor Athletics last March), although in the end the federation decided not to include her in the final list.
Marta García was Spain’s 5000m champion for the second year running in Torrent (Valencia). The woman from Palencia was not at her best as she overcame a medical condition a week before the championship that prevented her from playing in Madrid a week earlier. “I’m very happy with the result. The difference between this medal and the previous one is that it’s been revalidated. It can happen once, but when you’re there year after year, that’s the difficulty of the sport There are many factors that can work against you on a physical level and otherwise. It’s just that this Spanish Championship took place after an illness, that’s why I say that,” said Marta García.
‘After a week of gastroenteritis, World Cup minimum standards not raised’
The circumstances of the final did not allow the woman from Palencia to fight for the bare minimum to secure her ticket to the World Cup, with the Spanish title the main objective of the tournament. “At least after a week of gastroenteritis, I didn’t think about it. To be honest, I wasn’t physically strong enough to do the job on my own after a week of wind and illness. I just wanted to win the Spanish title, eventually the title That’s it. I’m focused on that, I don’t want to set the pace in the race and wait for someone to take the initiative. I see everyone waiting for me to do it, and with a little over four laps to go, I run Get up front and see how other people react,” admitted the athlete from Palencia.
Marta Garcia’s achievements this season have enabled her to qualify for the World Cup through her world ranking in the 5000m. Despite this, the Spanish Football Federation did not select any player who did not fit the logo set by the Spanish Football Federation itself, which they called “competitive”. “We know the same as the media. The documents there and the bare minimum that should be competitive and a paragraph at the end explaining that they can make the decisions they want. No one in the feds has contacted me to ask me anything, whether I’m fine or not. Bad, why didn’t I run something else. We had already qualified for the World Cup, but they thought we didn’t qualify because we didn’t meet the extra requirements that the Spanish Football Federation added,” explained Marta García. The athlete from Palencia hoped to get some exceptions from Budapest’s RFEA list and a chance to show his fitness, although the final decision was very different.
“I’ll try to play some games in August, although someone at my level or better will be at the World Championships”
“I’m disappointed with the decision. Because I’ve seen exceptions before, I want to be hopeful until the day the selection is announced. I think they’ll give me the chance, and I think I have more strength in my legs, losing What a pity the opportunity. If you get the points they ask you to get to the World Cup final that day, they take it away and that’s what you don’t share. It’s not fair for us to have lesser players in the World Cup, ’ added Marta Garcia.
After being ruled out of the World Cup in Budapest, the Palencia native’s plans for the remainder of the season have completely changed. Despite the decision by the RFEA, Marta García does not want to end her outdoor season, although no appointments have been confirmed on the calendar. “I will try to play some games in August, although there are few games and there are people at my level or higher in the world championships. Looking forward to September, there are still some “meetings” left, I want to show all the work of this year, But I haven’t been able to capture this work on the track”, adds Marta García. The grim news of not being able to make it to the world championships has forced the woman from Palencia to think about next summer’s Olympics in Paris (where brands are already planning to secure tickets).
“Everything we do from now on can be counted for the Olympics. We are already on this path and everything you can do in these months points us to this important appointment,” Marta Garcia concluded.