Marta Galimany: "I was running and training until the last day of my pregnancy"

VallsThe sun is beating down strongly in the capital of Alt Camp. Marta Galimany Guasch (Valls, 1985) receives ARA at the athletics tracks in her city and walks past a mural where she appears. She glances at it and smiles. "When I come with my son, it's very fun," she explains, as the little one remains mesmerized watching that big mural where his mother appears. A few years ago, the Valls City Council named the municipal tracks after Marta, an Olympian in Tokyo in 2021. A prodigious athlete who a few years ago broke the Spanish record for marathons in which men and women run together. And a few weeks ago she did it again in a women-only marathon. She has just turned 40. A woman who, curiously, took a long time to discover this vocation.

When she was young, did she want to be a basketball player?

— I liked basketball. In Valls we have a lot of tradition. My sister and her friends used to play. I did until my second year of high school. When I started studying environmental sciences at university, I quit. I liked it a lot, it allowed you to be with friends, to compete... so in my first year of my degree I felt like something was missing. Sport was part of my life and I had a void. I had to fill it.

And so it comes to athletics?

— I have always loved nature, and that's why I chose that career. I imagined a different life than the one I've had, although I've never been one to make many plans. Since I missed playing sports, I went running with a friend, Montse Martí. We saw there was a sports club at the university and we joined. I couldn't train alone, I liked doing it with people. Training alone isn't fun. Besides, I had no idea about athletics, I needed someone to guide me. And look, now I'm breaking records. The good thing about athletics is that quickly, if you train a little, results come. And it spurs you on to work harder.

That university student Marta would hardly have expected to become a great marathon champion...

— I could not have imagined it then. It has been a very beautiful evolution. With Jordi, my partner and coach, we always say that we have surprised ourselves. I simply wanted to enjoy the journey, without aspiring to anything concrete. If I achieved a good time in the 3,000 meters, I thought about beating that mark. But I wasn't one of those who despaired if I didn't achieve a time or a podium. I just kept going.

What were the beginnings like?

— First I ran distances like 800 meters or 1,500. Imagine what a change. Then I also started doing 3,000 steeplechase, which is perhaps where I competed the most years. And cross. And so I reached championships of Catalonia and Spain. I really enjoyed every step I took. Jordi and I always look at one thing. Every December 31st I run the 'cursa dels nassos' and try to lower last year's mark. You can't always do it, but in general the evolution has been very good. Seeing my dynamic, Jordi told me that a marathon could go well for me. First I opted for the half marathon and around 2016, already with the marathon. It was key that in 2020 I signed a contract with Adidas and I was able to dedicate myself to it professionally, until then I worked as an environmental technician.

And when she finds out she can be an Olympian?

— Very few people can go to the Games. Not going can generate frustration. I, on the other hand, since I had never imagined I would be an Olympian, received it as a prize. I just wanted to have fun and keep improving, and that's how I broke the Spanish marathon record in Valencia, which had been standing for two decades. And I qualified to go to the Games.

How does the relationship with Jordi, a key figure in his life, begin?

— When I finished studying in Barcelona, I returned to Valls. And he trained here. We met training. After a year of coinciding, I asked him if he wanted to train me, since he gave good advice and I had it complicated to follow from a distance with the coach I had had in Barcelona. First he said no, but I kept insisting. And in the end it turned out well, the thing. So much so that now we are married and have a little boy.

How do you remember the Tokyo games?

— It was magical, even though it was the pandemic games and I was afraid of getting infected and testing positive. Constantly taking PCR tests. The marathon was held in Sapporo, so we couldn't have much Olympic atmosphere in the village, but I have great memories of Sapporo. People hung messages for the marathon runners on their balconies and windows, they cheered a lot.

On the road to the Paris Games, an even better project arrived. Vital, in this case: to be a mother.

— My idea was to go to Paris, but I wasn't getting good marks. I had the minimum, but other Spanish girls did better. I could have tried to improve my time in order to qualify, but I was tired and we talked about it with Jordi. If I wanted to be a mother, it was the moment, due to age. And we took the step forward, knowing at all times that I would compete again later. We started asking and informing ourselves about what an pregnant woman could do. We talked to doctors for monitoring, we looked for experts... it wasn't easy because before, athletes, when they became pregnant, they quit. There was a lack of information and we created a working group to analyze what I could do. And draw conclusions that the team members will publish in the future. I was exercising every day before giving birth. And I recovered very well afterwards. And it is thanks to the team we put together that I was able to do it all. And in this way, we have also managed to obtain information that can serve other women athletes.

How long was it running?

— I ran until the end of my pregnancy, until the last day. The first trimester was a little more complicated because I didn't feel very well, but then I improved. I did strength routines and went out for a run every day, always controlled. I think the muscles that support the belly were well worked, because when running I didn't notice the belly, I felt comfortable. On September 10th I ran 10 kilometers and when I got home, my water broke. And the birth was on Diada. I'm not saying you have to do sports in every case. My case is conditioned by the fact that I am an athlete. But I think about the past and, do you think pregnant women weren't still working in the fields or at home centuries ago? If you feel well and are strong, you can continue doing sports.

Adidas understood, that you wanted to be a mother?

— My contract was ending in the summer of 2024 and when it was time to negotiate, I became pregnant. I told them and their response was exciting. They renewed my contract without having the guarantees that I could really perform again. I am very grateful to them.

On June 6, she achieved a time of 2h, 27min, and 38s in London, surpassing the record for a women-only marathon of 2:27:53 set by Mónica Pont on January 28, 1996, in Osaka. She is at her best moment.

— I wasn't expecting it. London is a big marathon, one of the major ones, as they say. These are famous, but perhaps not the best for achieving a record. Here, for example, the women start before the men, separately. When we start together, you can have men who act as pacemakers for you, who set benchmarks for you. I was euphoric because I wanted to run this mythical marathon... I ran a good part of the race alone, because a girl who was pacing me was going slow... so I was following my splits alone. And look, I achieved it.

On the same day, for the first time, a man broke the two-hour barrier... What happened that day?

— were arriving from behind. Sawa made historyarriving from behind. Sawa made history and we were in front without seeing it, talking, without looking. Breaking a record on a circuit that is neither the flattest nor the fastest is even more meritorious.

What are its big challenges, now?

— My first objective is to enjoy. Go to mythical major cities, with the family. I have already been to Chicago or London.

How was it when you found out that the Valls slopes would be named after you, and that they would make this beautiful mural?

— Mayor Dolors Ferrer called me and it surprised me a lot. I try not to think about it too much, as it impresses me. I train here, focused... but from time to time I think about it and... it's very strong. Èric, my son, always looks at the mural and says "mama". I hope to be a role model for young athletes.