Our world champion
How could we not have a world champion in the neighborhood? What happens is that Laura and Lise’s daughter prefers to boast about her friends and family, especially her grandmother, rather than her titles. That’s why everyone who knows her agrees that Vicio is a crack on, but above all, off the pitch.
-Born in La Barceloneta.
My family, both on my mother’s and my father’s side, are from La Barceloneta. I was born and lived here until my sister was born, and when I was 4, we moved in with my parents and grandmother Conchita in Santa Perpetua de Mogoda . But we’ve always been closely linked to the neighborhood.
-With your father , Lise , it couldn’t have been otherwise.
Yes, of course, because of his job ( net-maker in the Platgeta ) and his character , La Barceloneta is always very present at home.
-But your parents Laura and Eliseo didn’t know anything about hockey.
I started field hockey by chance. I had tried dance, judo, and tennis, but it didn’t last long. When I was 4, a neighbor, Neus, also originally from La Barceloneta, would pick me up from school and take her son David to play hockey. While he trained, I would do my homework or play freely in the stands. Until I wanted to put on some skates and do what David was doing.
-Messi’s grandmother also took him to watch his older brother train.
What was curious is that I wanted to be a goalkeeper from day one.
-At that time, there was no girls’ team in your town.
In Santa Perpètua, there were only boys, except for three girls, but they were older than me and soon they dropped out. I was the only girl, and a goalkeeper too! Then, my sister and other girls joined, but only a few and later.
-Until you jump into the Palau de Plegamans.
When I was 11 or 12, I wasn’t allowed to play on the boys’ team anymore. It was annoying because I had to change in another locker room or in the car. Through a friend of my father’s, I was given a try-out at the Palau Hockey Club, which had a women’s team. They took me on, and I quickly integrated. I could finally play on a girls’ team!
You progress through the ranks.
I had almost exclusively played in the lower categories. In my second year at the Palau, I played in the Catalan National Team and trained with the OK Liga team .
-For the uninitiated like me: in the first team at practically a child’s age.
Exactly. I debuted in Ok I think I was 14, in the second year of secondary school.
And as a goalkeeper.
At first, there were three goalkeepers on the team, and then I became a starter. It was the year the Palau Hockey Club won its first Ok League title. I was 16 years old.
-From here to the National Team.
Yes, at 17 they called me up.
What’s been your secret?
The secret is work. I train hard.
-You train hard without neglecting your studies. How do you do that?
Some days I’d double my training, but then I’d come home and study even if I was tired. Or I’d study in the car while I was being driven to practice or in class. I used to take advantage of every little bit of time.
-Because moment by moment, you graduated in Psychology from the UAB.
Yes, I currently work as a psycho-pedagogue in a school in Santo Adriano:
Elite athlete and psychologist. Is your speciality clear?
I think every team, every club, should have a psycho-pedagogical manager. Children are at an age where these aspects need to be carefully considered. But the reality is that there isn’t one, possibly because there isn’t a budget. A youth coach is a 17-year-old boy playing in the youth team. It’s difficult for him to control these aspects, which, at these ages, and at all ages, are fundamental. On a sporting level, but above all on a personal level.
All parents want a 17-year-old son to be a Nadal or a Lamine Yamal. This precocity of some athletes, like you, I do not know if it is the best example for the girls and boys who come after.
I didn’t intend it, I wasn’t even aware of it, much less my parents. But it’s true that girls now want to get there very quickly, and you have to know how to give them their time and space. Each one is different, and rushing things can only truncate progress. I repeat, I didn’t know or appreciate what I was doing. Call it ignorance, recklessness, or even innocence—my own and that of those around me. In fact, I think, unintentionally, this situation helped me. Now there are girls who, at 16, have already played on four teams, or whose father pressures the coach to play more, behaving like an expert or, worse, like a fanatic. And I can’t imagine the pressure he must put on his daughter when they’re home.
-You’ve always been at the Palau.
I didn’t even consider changing clubs. I value the human aspects more than the sporting aspects: the atmosphere, my teammates—most of them friends—the fans… Maybe it’s seeking my comfort zone, but it’s what I’ve always wanted: to feel comfortable where I am.
-Plus, the results go with it.
We’ve won two Champions Leagues, five Ok Leagues, the Queen’s Cup, the Spanish Super Cup … and, to a large extent, with the same teammates. Among them, without wanting to forget anyone, I have to highlight Laura Puigdueta and Berta Busquets. Club and national team teammates, my captains, and, above all, my friends.
– And a certain Gisela Vicente?
What can I say about my little sister? It was a dream to be on the same team. She’s been
playing for the last two seasons now in Bembibre , where she’s a very important player. But for me, she’s the ideal sister, even though I never tell her so.
-To your club record, we have to add the titles you’ve won with the national team.
4 World Championships and 3 European Championships. Oh, and a World Cup runner-up finish, which is also a feat for finishing second.
-Because I do not see that you believe it too much, heh heh ,
For me , hockey isn’t about titles. I value the day-to-day life of sharing the locker room and experiences with these people who have become my friends. I value being comfortable in an environment like the Palau.
– And the National Team?
Because look, maybe in the national team I’ve never achieved that state of, let’s say, total happiness that I enjoy “in my Palau,” and that’s so important to me. In the Select I ‘m Laura . A player, that’s correct, but I’m missing something of the other, more personal Laura.
– Because the National Team is already history for you .
Yes, I announced my departure after the last 2024 World Cup, which we won in Novara , Italy .
– At 27. I hope it takes you longer to leave the Palau.
I don’t think about it much. But the reality is that some of these teammates and friends are retiring and others are changing clubs, and that will certainly affect the desirable environment I mentioned, and you never know what’s going to happen!
– A match?
There are so many that I couldn’t pick just one, but I’d be more clear if you asked me for a title.
-Well, a title?
The 2024 Queen’s Cup. It had always eluded us. We had reached the final the last four years, and finally, we got it. It was the only title we were missing. We won in a penalty shootout that we started badly. They had up to 3 goals in the game and in the end we came back.
– A coach?
Many. Colo , Joan Sabaté, Polo Ataió , Rajé , and of course , Javier Barranquer and Miguel Busquets, father of my partner and friend Berta, among others.
“You can’t make a living from hockey, nor do you feel like a world champion.
At most, they give us a scholarship tied to titles. But obviously, we can’t compare ourselves to other sports. Although in other countries, things are even worse. In France, for example, girls have to pay even for their trips out of their own pockets.
“It would help if it were an Olympic sport.”
It would provide greater visibility. But the number of federation licenses doesn’t work in its favor. In Spain, except in Catalonia, it’s a minority sport. Internationally, it’s Portugal, Italy, and few others. We’re too few to be Olympians.
Palmarés
Clubs
- 2 European Women’s Roller Hockey Leagues : 2020-21, 2021-22
- 4 Spanish women’s roller hockey leagues : 2014-15, 2018-19, 2020-21, 2021-22
- 1 Catalan Women’s Roller Hockey League : 2020-21
- 1 Spanish Women’s Roller Hockey Cup : 2024
- 1 Super Cup Spanish women’s roller hockey team : 2021-22
Spanish national team
- 4 gold medals at the Women’s Roller Hockey World Championships : 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2024
- 1 silver medal at the Women’s Roller Hockey World Championship : 2022
- 3 gold medals at the Women’s European Roller Hockey Championship : 2015, 2018, and 2021
Individual
- Best goalkeeper of the 2021 European Women’s Roller Hockey Championship
- 2021-22 European Roller Hockey League Final
Conxita Albiol, the grandmother of hockey
Her parents , Laura and Lise , her Sister Gisela… you can quickly detect that family is a very important part of Laura’s life, but if there is one person who stands out in particular, it is Conx and Conxita Albiol. Not only Gisela and Laura’s grandmother, but at 88 years old, she is the most famous and beloved grandmother in field hockey.
” My grandmother is known by all the fans. You can see her talking to Gijón fans or girls from other teams that we meet once a year. For example, the other day she had a good time chatting with Christina Klein , a German goalkeeper and a hockey legend still active at 50 years old. Everyone knows her!
Berta Busquets, a colleague and friend, highlights that “Vicio’s grandmother is everyone’s grandmother. She comes to all the home games and always sits in the same place, she is unconditional. But what makes me laugh the most is that she always keeps turning her back on her granddaughter. She never looks when the ball is in Laura’s goal so as not to suffer. It makes me laugh a lot. She is very cool Conxi and we all love her very much”.
Conxita has turned 88 years old and, of course, Laura’s number is 88. From here we hope that one day Laura’s number will be 100. It will mean that she keeps playing and Conxita, watching her.
Good luck, champion!
