The golden age of Spaniards in sports

All conventions are very enjoyable. The more variety you do, the better. - Jeremy Bulloch

In the 17^th century, Spanish art, music and literature were on a high and this period came to be known as the Spanish Golden Age. Historians, perhaps, are feeling a déjà vu as we are witnessing yet another Golden Age in sports. Spain shows the variety you’d expect in a tapas stall in terms of its sporting achievements.

Rafael Nadal, David Villa, Pau Gasol – all these personalities have now become household names. In recent times, there has been an influx of silverware and sporting glory for the Iberian nation. Let’s take a look at the Spaniards’ achievements in various sports.

Pau Gasol with the World Championship trophy.

The Spanish Basketball team has won their first ever gold at the 2006 FIBA World Championship, and recently picked up the trophy at EuroBasket 2011 after winning the previous edition in 2009. The likes of Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, Jose Calderon and Sergio Rodriguez are all acclaimed players in NBA, and are key players to their respective teams. Pau Gasol won the MVP award at both the World Cup and EuroBasket, and is also a two-time NBA Champion with the LA Lakers. He has featured a whopping four times in the All-Star Team of The Season and remains a key player for the Lakers. The Spanish national team also won a Silver at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

In motorsports, Jorge Lorenzo and Fernando Alonso have ruled the roost in their respective fields. Alonso has been the pioneer in engineering Spain from a country that had no interest in motosports to being a country that hosts two Grand Prix races this season, and holds an unwavering passion for Formula 1 in particular. Alonso also has inspired many Spanish youngsters to take up racing when he became the youngest double world champion in 2006. The likes of Pedro De La Rosa and Jaime Alguersuari, who look up to him now burn the rubber on the same track alongside him.

Rafael Nadal. Need we say more? Perhaps the best ever player on clay and easily one of the greatest players of the game. A 11 time Grand Slam holder, a mind-boggling seven French Open titles and the winner of a record 21 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments, saw Nadal become the most successful player of what has been a recent invasion of Spanish talent in tennis. The likes of David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco, Nicolas Almagro and Feliciano Lopez are just a few examples. Spain has produced quite a number of World No 1s in the past decade or so, with the likes of Carlos Moya, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, who won four Grand Slams and of course Rafa Nadal. Other notable players in the past include Conchita Martinez and Sergi Bruguera. With annual tournaments in Madrid, Barcelona and Marbella, Spain has evolved into a truly spectacular tennis-playing nation.

Do we even need to talk about football? The passion began all the way back in the 80’s when Spain hosted the World Cup, but it is only more recently that the Iberian nation is living up to its billing. With their success at Euro 2008 and the World Cup in 2010, many people call this current squad, the ‘Godlen Generation’ of Spainish football. However, I would disagree. The efficiency and excellence of the youth academies at the clubs ensure that there is no one ‘Golden Generation’ – it’s a cycle. Before this generation we had the likes of Raul, Fernando Hierro and Helguera, who were all exceptional players but failed to achieve any silverware. The future is also bright, with the likes of Juan Mata, Cesc Fabregas, Alvaro Negredo, Pedro and Javi Martinez in the ranks. It can be said that Spain will look to dominate world football for a few more years.

GDANSK, POLAND – JUNE 10: Cesc Fabregas of Spain with the ball during the UEFA EURO 2012 group C match between Spain and Italy.

So how did all this happen? Well, unsurprisingly Barcelona seems to be the epicentre for this sporting earthquake. It was the 1992 Olympics that set the ball rolling for improving sports in Spain. The revenue and money obtained through the Summer Games was put to good use by the Spanish government, who set up sports schools and academies all over the country. It was a big gamble at that time – putting such a large sum of money purely into the development of sports – but I guess we all saw the results for ourselves? If we look beyong the trophies, we see that Spanish sport and sportsmen are making quite a lot of money. Real Madrid are the world’s richest, revenue-generating club in the world, with Barcelona snapping at their heels. The likes of Fernando Torres and David Villa are big-earners at their respective clubs and Rafael Nadal’s total prize money so far is a whopping $50,025,798. It is a major part of this money that goes to taxes and in turn helps the nation (which, judging by the situation doesn’t seem to be enough)

Barcelona also serves as perhaps the football coaching capital of the nation with its world-renowned La Masia producing some star players down the years like Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Pep Guardiola and Gerard Pique to name a few. Furthermore, it is still producing talents like Pedro, Thiago and Isaac Cuenca. La Masia, in its true self does not seem to be an academy, it is more like a sculptor’s workshop where little boys are sculpted into magnificent pieces of art. Madrid isn’t far behind, with Real’s academy producing Raul, Iker Casillas, Raul Albiol, Juan Mata, and Atletico giving birth to the player we now know as Fernando Torres. Barcelona Baloncesto was the academy through which Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol and many others. Real Madrid also have a basketball team, and an academy which has also produced many a player.

VALENCIA, SPAIN – JUNE 22: Fernando Alonso of Spain and Ferrari.

Meanwhile, both Fernando Alonso and Rafael Nadal were products of their own and their family members’ perseverance. Alonso’s father was a mechanic with a great interest in go-karting and made Fernando his very own kart when he was only three. When the little Alonso started racing in kart competitions all over the country, his father would accompany him and double up as his personal mechanic. Alonso is where he is now because of that little seed his father, Jose Luis sowed.

Rafael Nadal hails from a sporting family. His uncle Miguel Angel was a professional footballer for the Spain National Team and Barcelona and his other uncle Toni (now his coach) was a professional tennis player. He was introduced to tennis and football when he was only three, and he developed a great interest in both. He was a promising football player and was an even more promising as a rising tennis star. When he was 12, Uncle Toni wanted to intensify his training as he had won the Spanish and European titles in his category and was showing real potential. When asked to choose between football and tennis, Rafa chose tennis and the rest is history. The Spanish Tennis Federation requested him to move to Barcelona from his native Majorca so that he can train with better facilities. However, his family fearing for his education did not accept and consequently the financial support he received from the Federation was lesser than the other junior players. In turn, his father bore a major part of the costs.