Portugal’s Filipa Martins will take part in the Olympic Games for the third time when she competes in Paris2024, with her sights set on the all-around final in artistic gymnastics after battling injuries and longer careers in the sport.
At the age of 28, the Porto-born gymnast will match the ‘tri’ of Ana Rente, on trampoline, in Beijing2008, London2012 and Rio2016, and Esbela da Fonseca, in Rome1960, Tokyo1964 and Mexico1968.
The presence in the French capital will add to the list of achievements of Martins, who has a movement of the same name inscribed in the Official Code, an unprecedented milestone for Portugal in gymnastics, after having already been the first in a European final, in the asymmetric parallel bars, in 2021.
The 21st place, and fourth among athletes without a quota for Paris2024, at the 2023 World Championships, in the all around final, guaranteed the much-desired ticket in a cycle marked by injuries and physical problems, which she hopes to overcome.
“We’ve had several competitions going quite well. We’re happy with how far we’ve come, we’re on the right track. It’s close, but there’s still a bit to go. We’re anxious, but we’re taking it one day at a time and doing our best,” he explained in an interview with Lusa in Maia, where he trains.
The “we” in his speech refers to the work he does with his team, led by coach José Ferreirinha, to keep himself at the highest level over “many years of training and impact”, something that at this age “is always a little more difficult, with too much overload”.
“I don’t have any specific injuries, [but] I have chronic injuries from too much training, too many years, too many impacts. I try to manage my training because of that. I’ve already had five surgeries. Some days you wake up better and others worse,” he adds.
The Portuguese is pleased to see gymnastics as a sport with an “increasingly long career, with plenty of international gymnasts over the age of 25”, with the Portuguese, at 28, and the ‘superstar’ Simone Biles, 27, leading the way.
“When I joined, they were in their 18s and 20s. It was already said that they were old. We have the exception of Oksana Chusovitina, who is still practicing at the age of 49. She said she wanted to continue until the next Games… it’s always good. The evolution of the apparatus also allows us to suffer a little less from so many impacts,” she reflects.
Even so, she had hoped to see “perhaps a more structured life” and more support, given the limitations of a career in sport in Portugal.
This longevity, she says, doesn’t lead her to think about Los Angeles2028, because “it has to be one day at a time”.
Even though athletes “always want more and think they haven’t done enough yet”, she confesses that she already sees herself as part of Portuguese sporting history, not least because of the “very gratifying” effect of having children who idolize her and follow her work.
The historic 17th place in the asymmetric parallel bars at Tokyo2020, with a 43rd place in the all-around (she was 37th at Rio2016), is a bar for another Olympic participation, although this will always be conditional on physical availability.
“It always depends on my body, it’s a bit like that these days. One of the main goals is to make the final of the all around, we’ll find out on the 28th [the second day of the Games, and the date of the full competition qualification]. That’s our main goal. It’s also to enjoy another incredible experience, [because] the last one was very difficult because of Covid-19,” she said.
Also returning in Paris2024 is Simone Biles, the American who won four golds and a bronze in Rio2016, only to cite mental health problems in Tokyo2020 to ‘skip’ some of the events, winning a silver and a bronze.
After a hiatus, the American is back and is, from the outset, one of the main attractions of this edition, a feat praised, says Filipa Martins, for the way she achieved it.
“Just the fact that she’s back for another Games, wanting to do what she couldn’t in Tokyo2020, shows all the drive and resilience she has, the desire to do even more than she already has. Without her, it won’t be the same, either at the Games or in other competitions,” he praises.
Moreover, one of the country’s leading sports figures is pleased with the growth among the younger age groups in one of the disciplines in which Portugal has won Olympic Games medals, but warns of gaps in support and resources.
“We’ve been growing more and more in the younger age groups. There’s a long road ahead, not just for athletes and coaches, but for the things we need for our sport. Psychologists, physiotherapists, doctors who support the younger age groups, because our sport starts very early,” he points out.
Among the recommendations is a general one, given that “there is still a lack of a whole structure behind it that supports young talent from an early age”, even if they have managed to grow up without it.
