Gold medal winner in mixed relay and Bronze medal winner in the 20km race walk

Álvaro Martín Uriol is a prominent Spanish athlete specialised in race walking. He was born on 18 June 1994 in Llerena, Badajoz.

Throughout his career, he has achieved many successes: he was Olympic champion in Paris 2024, two-time world champion in 2023 (20km and 35km races), and two-time European champion in 2018 and 2022 in the 20km race. At the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, he was the gold medal winner in mixed relay and bronce medal winner in the 20km race walk. He was also champion in Spain on several occasions and he represented his country in several international competitions since his debut at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games. In early September, he announced his retirement after receiving the Medal of Extremadura.

When did you start out in race walking?

Athletics is a beautiful sport that includes many different disciplines. A sprinter, a weight thrower, a jumper and a race walker have nothing in common, except that we compete on the same athletics track. I started long-distance running at nine years old, but when I was 13, as I grew up, my knees hurt a lot from the impact of running. My sister was a race walker, so I told my coach that I could try it too so that I didn’t have to quit. I felt in love with it and have continue until now.

Which achievement are you most proud of?

Being an Olympic champion, of course. However, the first European championship I won, in Berlin 2018, was my first big medal, the one that made me prove that I was established in the elite. But the hardest for me was the competition for the gold medal in the World Championship in Budapest in the 35km race walk. That race was decided in the last kilometres, and I had to give my very best to win it, both physically and mentally.

How does each member of your multidisciplinary team contribute to your physical and mental preparation?

My coach, my personal trainer, my physiotherapist, my physiologist, my nutritionist and many more people deal with the physical part; my psychologist and friend Pablo del Río is in charge of the mental part. This multidisciplinary team must be directed like an orchestra by my coach José Antonio Carrillo, so that all the “instruments” are attuned.

Who have been your biggest influences in your career?

The people closest to me, my parents, my sister and my training partners. I have always been more influenced by “normal” athletes rather than the “superstars”.

What did you feel when you won the first medal in an international competition?

It was very emotional because my biggest rivals started to see me as an equal. I was extremely happy to see that my parents and family were very proud of me for achieving such an important victory.

How do you balance your personal life with the demands of being an elite athlete?

The problem is not my personal life and the sacrifices it involves, but often implying the people around me. They share the sacrifice to be with me. It’s not a problem for me because it’s the life I’ve chosen. But it can be for the people I love.

How did you feel when you and your partner María Pérez became the first Spanish athletes to win the European, World and Olympic championships?

It was the icing on the cake. We went to Paris after getting a fourth place in the previous Olympic Games in Tokyo. That fourth place was a very hard blow, because there’s no difference between a World Championship and the Olympics from a sports point of view. But an Olympic medal, for instance the bronze one, is very different from a World Championship medal, including gold. Maria and I have very similar Sporting careers: we won our first European championship and our first World championship together, and we have been Olympic champions together too. That’s why we experience it like it’s the icing on the cake of parallel sports careers.

How do you deal with the pressure and expectations of the fans and the media?

Pablo del Río helped me to abstract myself from the media as the Olympics approached. We often call the pressure “responsibility” because of the results we can achieve.

Now that you have retired as a sports professional, what are your plans? Will you continue your academic studies?

Studying is not an option but a necessity. Going to the university and getting out of the elite sport bubble is great to see that your reality is different from that of 99 per cent of people. I’ve also applied my knowledge to help some athletes in matters such as doping, scholarships, conflicts with their federations or clubs, etc. Also, I’m a member and founder of the Athletes Committee of Extremadura, a body attached to the General Directorate of Sports that is committed to improve public sport policies in my homeland. My short-term goal is to get a double master’s degree: the Master’s Degree in Law and Procurement plus Business Law at the Centro de Estudios Garrigues.

Do you know the Paradores Network?

Yes, of course, I’ve been to quite a few, I love them! I have always regretted not being able to stay at the Parador de Jarandilla de la Vera and the one in Toledo when I wanted to go there... Paradores is always a guarantee and offers accommodation of the highest quality in very good locations.