Jokin Altuna is a happy pelota player. After nineteen months without winning, on Sunday he slept with his fourth txapela of Cuatro y Medio, seventh of his career. However, this does not satisfy his hunger either. “By winning it I won’t be less excited about the next one,” he admits. Because of everything he has been through with his shoulder injury during the championship, he recognizes that he “knows very well,” but he has already shelved the tournament and now wants to focus on recovering from the injury.
– The celebration was different from the previous ones.
– But really pretty. I really liked the video they made and the welcome they gave me in the town. I had dinner with the family because I wanted to be calm after returning from Bilbao. Then I met up with friends. People also came from other towns, Tolosa, Azpeitia…
– He has lost finals playing much more than he did on Sunday.
– Conclusions are always drawn based on the data, but each match requires work and it was clear to me that I needed to play very well tactically to get them out of the area where they have done a lot of damage throughout the championship. The plan went very well, although Peio Etxeberria did not play what he knows how. It was an easier final than he thought.
– With the score 3-0, the Navarrese admitted that he was gripped and distressed.
– It came from subtracting everything to perfection, and at that moment if you start to fail it is very difficult. You are in front of 3,000 people, you know that it will be over in an hour, and if he left the game it is because he could not control the situation. After we showered I told him that it had happened to me too. When those bad feelings come, it is difficult to control them.
– When did you see the final won?
– Well on track when I returned to the court after the second mandatory break. Not before. With 15-4 in a final you know that, if you screw up, you will remember the lost opportunity for a long time.
– He had not won a title for 19 months. What has it meant?
– Another great joy. But when a championship ends I draw conclusions and shelve it. Just because I win this one won’t make me less excited about the next one.
– Has a weight been lifted off your shoulders?
– No. Each txapela is something very special, but I haven’t taken any pressure off myself. Because I would not have won in the last four previous championships, the work I did in them was very good.
– Given everything that has happened with the injury, is she the one who knows best?
– It tastes so good. Winning is always nice. It is a unique but very short moment. Assimilating it is not that easy either because there is no rest.
– At 27 years old he has equaled the figures of Olaizola II and Irujo. What does it mean for you?
– When I was little they were like gods to me. I still remember when I took my first photo with Irujo in Amezketa when he was 11 years old. Having seven titles now is something very big. But you have to enjoy the moment and keep working.
“Very nice things”
– Is he in one of his best moments?
– Yes. I always want to earn more. I think that’s good for the athlete. I know I’m achieving very nice things, but what I like is playing and training. My greatest hope is to extend my career as long as I can because then I will be happy.
– Are you obsessed with txapelas?
– I have never been. I think there have been pelotaris with fewer titles but they have been better than others who have won more. A txapela does not define a pelotari.
– You maintain that you are not required to reach a final but to win it. Do you think that with this title you have silenced more than one mouth?
– No. Fans are free to give their opinion. A person once told me that a third would like it, another would not, and the rest would be indifferent. Many people support me at the fronton and I feel loved.
– On Sunday some whistles were heard in Bizkaia.
– He who whistles in a fronton is unnecessary. He is equal to the pelota player he is. I also don’t think that the person who does it is very close to any pelota player. I don’t give importance to that. I don’t have the feeling of being whistled at.
– How is your shoulder after the blow you suffered in the final?
– Hurt. I have quite a few discomforts, but with the txapela I am happy and I don’t think about it so much. Now it’s time to recover it to 100%, and rest.
– If it had been at the beginning of the crash, would the film have been different?
– If I got it with a 3-3 score on the scoreboard, I think I wouldn’t have won the final.
– How long will it take to recover?
– When I was injured they told me I needed between four and six weeks. In each game I have arrived a little better, but I have always had the bad luck of giving myself another one.
– It will return at the beginning of 2024.
– I hope it is sooner. But I am clear that I want to return fully recovered. I’ve been having discomfort for quite a few weeks and I want to forget about it, recover very well and enjoy being on the court.
– What do you have to do for this?
– Physiotherapy, massage and many rehabilitation exercises to strengthen the area. They say that with this I will recover. If this is not possible, there is also the possibility of applying plasma.
2023-11-20 19:08:35
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