The World Tournament lasted 2 months, longer than some of the most acclaimed competitions in traditional sport, and was hosted by Victory Road, which is one of the largest Pokémon communities in the world. The participation was quite wide, made up of 55 countries with about 12 members representing each team, which means that more than 600 players participated in the event.
The tournament consisted of 2 group phases of several weeks each and a play-off where everything would end up being decided. Our team, after beating the United States in the round of 16 and unseating China in the quarterfinals, managed to clinch victory after a close final against Italy. Within this world it has been a great feat for Spain and it has been an honor to be part of this victory as one of the most outstanding players in our country today.
This achievement is due to the joint effort of the 12 players of the Spanish Pokémon VGC Team, (Alex Gómez, Manuel Barea, Eric Ríos, Guillermo Castilla, Max Gil, Víctor Medina, Antonio Sánchez, Miguel Pedraza, Rafa Busutil, Oriol Plaza, Jesús Jiménez and myself) each of them has done their bit for the team to move forward, also being the first year that Spain has managed to win the World Cup. I hope that in future editions our selection continues as strong as this year, since each time in the electronic sports industry we find a growth in the competitive structure and we have competitions like these in which we can represent our country and transmit values as in traditional sport. A relevant example in relation to this aspect are the first digital competitions that the IOC has included in the recent Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Many have asked me how I combine my competitions with this world, the truth is that it is not so easy, since these competitions require me not only many hours of study but also a healthy life and a lot of physical and sports preparation (although the latter I must say that I’ve always loved it). The truth is that coordinating everything requires strict schedules. When I get up every morning I usually practice this video game for a while, then I study several hours before lunch, I train in the afternoon, and at night I have plenty of time to practice a couple of more hours with the video game, always trying not to affect my hours of sleep, which is also relevant for physical performance and study. Pokémon is a strategy game that forces you to think and reason the plays and in which decision-making is important, which is why it helps you keep your brain in shape and contribute to a healthy life. All this routine leaves me without much time for other activities, but even so I always make time to get out for the air on weekends and socialize with my family and friends. In the end, I have come to realize that having healthy habits and spending time training for esports competitions have reciprocal benefits and have been the key to achieving this first success in the World Cup.
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