Although more than twenty years have passed, Mikel García still has Aitor Elordi’s beginnings in baseball fresh in his memory. He was his coach from youngest to cadets in Mallabia, and later in youth when he was in charge of the technical sessions of the Biscayan Federation. That boy who was part of one of the “good litters” that the local club had will play the Manomanista final against Jokin Altuna on Sunday in the Bizkaia pediment. Two pelotaris from the same farm with a different evolution process, whose work has taken them to the top.
Each one at their own pace, but both are united by the virtue of perseverance and the feeling towards a sport that today is being lost. Because in addition to pointing out ways from the age of six, Elordi was also one of those children “who did not leave the pediment.” «He came with his grandfather the first and left the last. He put in more hours than anyone, and he was always with the ball in his hands, “he recalls.
At those early ages he came to play as a defender “because he was the one who carried the weight of the game and made few mistakes”, but his instinct always led him towards happy pictures. He “he took balls from the striker, he went wide and looked for the shot.” In cadets he has already moved to the space of the court in which he currently moves best and there he was able to express himself better with the gift he has for the hook and the volley. «The two blows that he has used the most since always». He was already pointing ways and made it clear in school tournaments. «He has always been cheeky on the court. And when he had to play it, he did it despite being at a difficult moment in the game. That comes standard.”, highlights Garcia.
At the age of 16, Elordi became part of the Iurreta club. “He played with the defender Gorka Otaduy, from Berriz”, and took the opportunity to train with the group of professionals then directed by Josetxo Areitio, in charge of preparing the Asegarce pelotaris –currently Baiko–. With Mikel García he coincided again in youth in the federation technical sessions.
power and speed
He belongs to the 1996 fifth, and in the GRAVNI tournament he already had the opportunity to measure himself against pelotaris from other teams, including Altuna III and Erasun from Gipuzkoa, and Laso and Martija from Navarre. “Even Irribarria who, although he was a year younger, had already gone up.” Elordi and Oier Etxebarria were runners-up in pairs the year that Aitor Etxebarria, from Nabarniz, won the individual.
His jump to professionalism came at the age of 19. Shortly before, he had started working with the Aspe coach, Jokin Etxaniz. His time in the amateur field, which allows pelotaris to harden a bit, was quite brief and the tournaments that he was able to play were few. He «He played the Biharko Izarrak the year that Altuna III won it, that of Lezo and some others».
Green came to the elite and the bill to pay had its price. It has taken time to mature. «More than anything from the physical point of view. Technically he is just as daring and he had the positions since he was little. And with the serve he has always been smart ».
But its explosion has not left anyone indifferent. “The power and speed that he has gained have helped him a lot. Now defending he is also able to attack. He saw that he could arrive, but no one expected him to be this way », he highlights. In eight months he has risen to the crest of the wave, “and there is no end in sight.” After years of work he was third in the Cuatro y Medio, he won the Couples with Zabaleta and is the revelation of the Manomanista.
He is in the final of the biggest tournament. And Mikel García believes that he “will have his options in the top clash.” «More, after the quarterfinal match at Astelena in Eibar in which he had Amezketa’s man on the ropes. He looks calm on the pitch and I don’t think the atmosphere at Bizkaia can affect him unless he starts with bad feelings. He is a pelotari who grows in games like this, just like his rival. The two who are physically better have reached the final, so they can put on a nice show », he concludes.
2023-05-31 18:00:18
#origins #Manomanists #revelation
