Miquel Mañé: "It makes no sense to do sports to get hurt, sport must be joy"

BarcelonaA few weeks ago, Miquel Mañé (Calafell, 2003) was proclaimed world champion of aerobic gymnastics for the third time. A growing discipline of which he has become the most well-known face thanks to his good results and the magic he conveys while competing. Miquel visits ARA happy, after having fulfilled two of his goals: a new world title and finishing his university degree in biochemistry at the UB. A tireless boy who achieves what he sets out to do without losing his smile.

What did you feel when winning the World Championship for the third time?

— Relief. Knowing that I no longer have that pressure on me, because I have been preparing for this championship all season. I wanted to do well. Also, it was in Pamplona, it was organized by the Spanish Federation, I felt more responsibility. I tried not to think about it too much... but I was walking around the city and my face was everywhere. I was the attraction on the posters. Deep down it is a good thing, because it means that I have made progress, but that pressure turns into a snowball. And the challenge is for it not to crush you.

Nothing to do with his first World Cup, then.

— The first time I won the World Championship was in Baku, in my debut. After the pandemic. And it was a drama, to be honest. Because of the distances, tests, masks... it was not easy. But on a sporting level, I didn't feel pressure. I was facing people who had been competing their whole lives and I was just going with the idea of doing well and enjoying it. It is true that I came from being a junior world champion and the veterans always look at what the young ones are doing to be prepared. They knew who I was, but that I won the gold was somewhat of a surprise. Once you are a champion, however, everything changes. They look at you differently.

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Is it now you who looks at what the young people are doing, since they are the rival to beat?

— Well, look, no. I don't look at it. I've learned that the best thing I can do is not to focus on others, because if I do, I add pressure to myself. If I obsess over rivals, it can work against me. Logically, many rivals are also friends and I know them, I look at what they do, but more out of friendship than out of being obsessed with analyzing others.

Normally, in sports the opponent is always analyzed. His case is surprising.

— In fact, colleagues of mine from the Federation tell me that too. They do analyze their rivals, what they do... and me, well, I don't care. I look at what time I have to compete, who I go after in the starting order, and that's it. It is impossible to have everything under control. So I focus on what depends on me. Does what others do depend on me? No, right? So I focus on being ready to perform the best possible exercise. And trying to enjoy what I do.

It is a very positive approach. Trying not to add pressure or pain, an idea far from other very harsh training methods.

— It makes no sense to do a sport to get hurt or destroy yourself. Sport should give us joy, be an escape route from life's problems. It allows us to improve and learn. It is clear that discipline and sacrifice are needed to win. Sport teaches you to be disciplined, but you cannot allow it to cross certain limits. Bad manners make no sense. Sometimes the obsession with the podium, with winning, works against us... I understand it, but it can generate frustrations. I believe one must focus on being able to give your best no matter what happens. In my second year as a junior, when I was already a world champion, I made a mistake that cost me finishing second, as I was obsessed with triumph. I learned a lot from that moment. I understood that expectations can hurt you.

How do you enter the world of gymnastics?

— I used to play basketball as a kid, in the village. But during practice, when I went to fetch the ball, I would do jumps and somersaults. I was always jumping up and down, ignoring the ball. So the coach told my mother that she had to find me another sport. Some family acquaintances with whom we spent our summers in the Pyrenees told us that in Vilanova i la Geltrú there was an artistic gymnastics club, so they took me there. I was there for three years and it was very hard. It was almost military training and I was a little boy who wanted to jump like a monkey, to be happy. So I quit. Everything would change when, later on, at school, a girl told me that she did gymnastics at a club in Calafell. And I went to a summer camp, in 2014. And I discovered aerobic gymnastics. I didn't even know it existed.

Not everyone knows her. How would you introduce her?

— It is still a minority sport, but whoever sees it, especially live, gets hooked. It is a very complete discipline. It takes elements from other gymnastics disciplines, adding the aerobic component; that is, the traditional aerobics of gyms, where you do jumps, kicks, to the rhythm of the music. In this case, we choose music to create a choreography of aerobic exercises. This discipline allows me to change the exercise every year and I am one of those who need changes, so I like it. I fell in love with this sport immediately, I had a blast. But the coaches already told my parents that I would be good. And in my second year they already sent me to the junior World Championship... in Korea. I had not been on a plane and they already sent me there.

You have finished your degree in biochemistry. How do you imagine yourself in the future?

— I prefer not to think about it too much [smiles]. I will definitely do a master's degree. And I want to stay involved in this sport, whether by coaching or being a judge.

When does your performance begin, what goes through your mind?

— In this World Cup, I won't lie to you, I suffered a bit beforehand. I tried to stay inside a bubble, but it was difficult. But once it's your turn to go out and the music plays, everything changes. My muscle memory kicks in, after having repeated it in so many training sessions. And I keep thinking about the next move. And when you finish... well, the release comes. I accumulate a lot of tension, it happens to me with my studies or sports. I can end up crying when I finish, because I feel liberated.

How is the exercise creation process?

— An idea comes to me and I follow it. Since I really like nature, last year the idea was the wind and Aeolus, the Greek god of the wind. Once you have the idea, you need to design the jersey, find the music, and then the choreography. Perhaps the most complicated moment is finding the music that represents the idea I have in my head. If you are inspired by a film it is easier, because you look for the soundtrack. One year I was inspired by Saturday Night Fever, a film that my father likes, with the music of the Bee Gees. But with the wind, it is harder.

Do you also design the jerseys?

— Yes. With an iPad I draw the ideas I have and then I send it to the company that makes them.