It was an emotional goodbye last week in Barcelona, where 34-year old Spanish swimmer Erika Villaecija Garcia swam her last-ever Spanish National Championship meet. The four-time Olympian and 7-time European Championship medalist announced her retirement earlier this month, committing to swimming out the Short Course National Championships and the team-centric Club Cup in December.
During a ceremony in the final day of the championships, Villaecija was honored as an ‘eternal historic swimmer in the history of Spanish Swimming.” With tears in her eyes, she received a commemorative plaque from Enric Bertran, the president of the Catalan Federation; and a bouquet of flowers from her teammates at Sabadell CN Judit Ignacio and Marc Sanchez.
She was also given a gold badge of the Spanish Swimming Federation and the Creu de Sant Jordi – the highest civilian distinction of Catalonia.
“We lose an exceptional swimmer, but we gain a psychologist and a promising coach,” the federation said in its official goodbye. “THANK YOU, ERIKA, for so many years, for so many emotions, for so many things. Your legacy is a treasure that will be remembered for generations to come.”
Villaecija’s Times from last week’s National Championships
- 100 back – 11th (1:02.58)
- 200 back – 7th in prelims (2:14.73), Scratched Final
- 100 fly – 6th (1:01.70)
- 200 fly – 5th (2:14.71)
- 400 IM – 8th (4:50.62)
