Listening to music. (eitb.eus, 24 May 2023)

Athlete, Student

Spanish

Alejandra Quereda [national], ESP; Ana Maria Pelaz [national], ESP

An injury to her left knee prevented her from competing at the 2021 World Championships in Kitakyushu, Japan. She underwent surgery on the problem in November 2021 and was away from the sport for five months. (elcorreo.com, 30 May 2022; rfegimnasia.es, 17 Nov 2021; noticiasdealava.eus, 20 Oct 2021)

She first tried the sport at age three.

"I was restless so my parents signed me up for a rhythmic gymnastics class. I also tried swimming and skating, but I left them. The only thing that really interested me was rhythmic gymnastics."

She trains for up to eight hours a day at the High Performance Centre [CAR] in Madrid, Spain.

Winning three bronze medals at the 2022 World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. (noticiasdealava.eus, 25 Sep 2022)

Spanish rhythmic gymnast Almudena Cid, Ukrainian rhythmic gymnast Ganna Rizatdinova. (mundodeportivo.com, 27 Jul 2019; elcorreo.com, 08 Jan 2019)

She listens to music before competition to get fired up. (eitb.eus, 24 May 2023)

"Rhythmic gymnastics is part of my life. I could not see myself without it." (elcorreo.com, 08 Jan 2019)

SWITCH TO GROUP COMPETITION
She began her career competing in individual events but after suffering an injury to her left knee in 2021, she opted to compete in the group events. "After my injury I thought about what I wanted to do in my sporting career. I had always had that interest to try with the group and I said, 'It has to be now or it will be too late'. I talked with the national team coach and she told me to try it. After a tryout period, I liked it and I stayed." (noticiasdealava.eus, 25 Sep 2022)