Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

Between the waves with the bodyboard

It is similar to surfing, but this sport has some peculiarities. Alex Odriozola, European Junior Bodyboard Champion, explains and shows them to us.

NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar: Oh, hello, Alex! Good afternoon to you!

ALEX ODRIOZOLA; European Junior Bodyboard Champion: Good afternoon to you!

In the case of N. A. is: You've already turned Zumaia into a bodyboard district, haven't you?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Yeah, we're a lot of people here every day.

In the case of N. A. is: Is bodyboarding more powerful than surfing here?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Yeah, yeah, surfing is just some old, well, old, or... young people with bodyboards.

In the case of N. A. is: How would you define it, what is bodyboarding?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: A bit like a surfboard but smaller, with some fins or fins to take more speed... A water sport: put on your fins and try to catch the waves!

In the case of N. A. is: Is it faster than surfing?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: I don't know, faster, but I'd say the basics are easier to learn.

In the case of N. A. is: Why is it less scary to go lying on the waves?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Yeah, plus the surfboard is harder and more susceptible to bumps, while our surfboard is softer.

In the case of N. A. is: What material is necessary for bodyboarding?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Well, here's the thing: a paipo...

In the case of N. A. is: Paipo, cork, boogie...

I'm talking about A. According to O.: They are made of different materials, for the current winter, it tends to be softer, since the water is cold, so as not to harden too much.

In the case of N. A. is: Does the cold harden the material?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Yes, and for the summer we use another material, harder.

In the case of N. A. is: Remarkably, it has two sides in terms of material, one harder...

I'm talking about A. According to O.: We go over the soft part, and the bottom part, the sheet, is harder, stiffer, to take more speed.

In the case of N. A. is: Those little fins are kind of special, aren't they?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: If you’ve never seen them. What’s more, the ones I have in my hand are especially different in shape. The others have a larger curve and these are more straight and harder.

In the case of N. A. is: Starting to dress both, how do they get dressed?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: In one leg this and in the other. They say they are made following the pattern of fish fins, but I don’t know, I’m not so sure the result is the same.

In the case of N. A. is: You’ll be able to see them dressed or not, right?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: Yes, we mostly walk our legs to take a walk, and without them you don’t have enough strength. Without them you are not able to catch the waves. In many maneuvers it is necessary to know how to position the legs.

In the case of N. A. is: The maneuvers in the waves are scored, right?

I'm talking about A. According to O.: There are some maneuvers that give you more points, we try to do them in tournaments, but they give you more points because they are more difficult. If you get it, fine, but if you don't get it, you'll get a lower score. That's the same as always. You have to do what each wave demands.

IBAN SAN MARTIN; Coach: Find out if the state or conditions of the sea are appropriate and depending on whether we enter the water or not. If the state of the sea is very good, we enter directly into the water. We do the recording work so that they can later see themselves to see what progression or improvement they have.

In the case of N. A. is: In recent years the training of these marine sports has changed a lot. In the first land, they would hardly have done any training.

ASIER LANDA; Sports Planning: They have always been very anarchic sports and have been considered as sports to have fun. But today this is considered a real sport, and to improve as in any other sport requires training, serious and controlled training. This is our job: to control the planning trainings, and to follow the progression within that planning.

In the case of N. A. is: At least in one aspect it is an explicit sport: in maneuvers, for example. What are the characteristics of the bodyboard for training?

I'm talking about A. According to L.: Bodyboarding is a complete sport. On the demand side, it is important to cultivate both aerobic and anaerobic capacities. Because they're in an unstable environment in the water, they're currents... they depend on a lot of factors. That’s why it’s important to be well-trained aerobically to have a quick recovery.

In the case of N. A. is: Why do you need a quick recovery to catch waves over and over again?

I'm talking about A. According to L.: That is, the goal is to catch the waves one after the other, and a good aerobic capacity is required to catch the wave in good and cool conditions. Do we develop this out of the sea?

In the case of N. A. is: How do you exercise your aerobic capacity?

I'm talking about A. According to L.: With the bike, running, swimming... we move in these enclosures. Working in the pool is an important part of running and cycling training. And, as you mentioned earlier, it’s explicit, especially in technical gestures. In order to perform these gestures, the muscles must be prepared. That’s why you also have to do the work of preparing the muscles: we do a lot of specific exercises for this. The floors, the machines... and today the core work is very important. Since they have to adapt in unstable situations, we also put them into unstable situations outside the water.

The training of the bodyboard has changed for a few years, it was previously done in the water in case of good conditions, but now they know that in order to have a good response in the water, it is necessary to train properly also outside the water.

And then we always talk about the psychological part of training. You have to have enthusiasm, enthusiasm to improve, both in and out of the water. In the end the two are connected, so when we improve on the outside we will surely improve on the water as well. This is why physical and psychological training is combined with technical training.