“I’m still amazed when I see my face in As”. That’s what Pereza sang in the song Princesas and that’s what Paul McGrath (Barcelona, 2002) still thinks. The Catalan athlete won his first gold medal on Saturday at the European Race Walking Half Marathon Championship in Birmingham. At just 24 years old, it’s his third medal after the European silver achieved in Rome (2024) and the world bronze in Tokyo (2025). “Suddenly I find myself here. In three years, I’ve been to the Olympics and won world and European medals. It’s a bit scary, but I had always dreamed of this and it motivates me immensely to continue,” he confesses to ARA.