Five years ago, at Christmas, Héctor Ruiz had the first warning of heart problems that would distort his future. From that moment on, the man from Figueres had to fight against all odds to beat them, even if it meant ending his dream of participating in the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games. That was also when he realized that his story of overcoming had begun decades ago, when he was a baby and his mother put him in a pool for the first time. Without being aware of it, he never wanted to get out of it again to become a professional swimmer. In the elite, however, a very expensive price must be paid. And this is precisely what is told in the story Swimming against the difficulties, written by Ruiz and Eva Serra, teacher at the Aprenem dance school in Figueres, with illustrations by Manel Mora. The prologue is by Raül Romeva from prison, who as soon as he learned the story felt complicity. To swim in open water and dance, knowing “to have and to take care”.
“The book talks about values, effort, overcoming and perseverance, which is what sport has given me. I think it’s interesting for everyone. Despite finding such a great difficulty, I managed to overcome it and move on despite not swimming as before “, explains Ruiz. In the midst of the bad pass that fate had played on him, the swimmer decided to try the dance to avoid negative thoughts and turn the page. That’s when he agreed with Serra: “My parents have been coming to school with Eva for a long time and I came when I had to finish my sports career. I had always wanted to learn to dance. “I had heard so much about Hector, that I was very interested in reading his biography. It’s a very beautiful subject and I proposed to him to tell the story about his life as an elite athlete, I’ve already written a few of them “, adds Serra.
Swimming against the difficulties has been conceived in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, so “we have never met in person.” “Sending us audios via WhatsApp has gone very well, as have the texts. From there, I was collecting everything. The illustrations are from photos of Hector’s career. We didn’t meet until we already had the book, everything was at a distance “, comments Serra.
They both wanted to capture the personal struggle behind a big dream with a complicated story, but at the same time “beautiful” and that can serve as inspiration for the little ones. “From an early age, an athlete learns to overcome the frustrations and difficulties he encounters along the way. Also failures. What goes as far as Hector has learned it perfectly and is a good example of how to behave and live with all the negative things that are presented, “says Serra. The dance teacher emphasizes that swimming “is not a sport that Héctor chose at the outset”: “He put himself in the water in his mother’s arms, he felt comfortable and from there he struggled training. He decided he wanted to compete and go to the CAR (High Performance Sports Center) in Sant Cugat. He made very complicated decisions because he really believed in them. When he presented with a serious health problem, he was also able to deal with it because he had learned to do it since he was a child.
From swimming to dancing
Eight months after undergoing surgery and discovering that he should retire at age 25, Ruiz threw himself into the dance pool. A world he did not know and was excited to taste. “All that time served me to reflect and come to dance school with a different mentality. I needed to disconnect and try another sport. This has helped me to overcome the difficulties even more, after the big kick I took “, says the swimmer who is now the technical director of the CN Figueres. The challenge now is to train future professional swimmers to achieve their dreams.
“Hector came to have fun and with another chip. Dancing is a sport that also demands, but in his case did not come to win anything. With music and dancing he disconnected from all the problems he had. Relating to people also helps. He came to learn to dance, move and have fun, ”says Serra.
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