Melani Costa will arrive in Kazan "with the highest expectations" to face the upcoming Swimming World Championships starting on August 2 in the Russian city. "I am preparing for the competition with great excitement, I am much better from my injuries, I am controlling them a lot and I have just come from a training camp in Mexico, where I had the opportunity to train a lot and very well, with high quality, so I am going with the highest expectations and at the same time with some reserve so that I can give everything next year in Rio", said the athlete from Mallorca.
The swimmer made these statements this morning at the Sports Council at the end of the presentation of the second edition of the "II Melani Costa Swimming Camp", which will take place from August 8 to 15 in the municipality of La Nucía, Alicante. The Mallorcan swimmer was accompanied by the Secretary of State for Sport, Miguel Cardenal, and the Sports Councilor of La Nucía, Sergio Villalba. Costa took advantage of the event to give more details about the camp and her impressions for the upcoming Swimming World Championships in Kazan, which start in just 15 days.
When asked about the events she will compete in, the Mallorcan told us that "in addition to the 400 freestyle and 200 backstroke, I will also participate in the 200 freestyle. I will compete in those three events, waiting to see if there will be a women's relay or not, but in principle those three are it and I feel sufficiently capable".
One of Costa's favorite events is the 400 meters freestyle. When asked if she feels capable of beating Katie Ledecky, the swimmer replied, "I would never dare to establish a position, but obviously I will fight as much as possible to at least get close and once there, why not? I don't rule anything out, but being realistic, she is a very tough opponent, with great potential. We will try to get closer and, why not, think about Rio 2016 to beat her".
Another event where the Mallorcan stands out is the 200 meters backstroke, although she does not expect to excel in this discipline at this World Championships. "The truth is that I am not training at such a specific level to win. Right now, my main events are the 200 and 400 freestyle. I'm leaving the 200 backstroke, but not as a diversion. Last year it was more for fun, now I'm taking it more seriously, but I still have a lot of room for improvement to get there", she said.
About the National Championships held this weekend at the Picornell Pools in Barcelona, Costa said she was "very happy, not only with the placements, but also with the times I achieved. As I mentioned before, I just arrived from Mexico, it has been a very tough training, I didn't have time to relax or fine-tune my muscles. I have been competing at a very high level and yet I still have a lot to improve for the World Championships".
About Duane da Rocha's absence in this championship, her main rival in the 200-meter backstroke category, the UCAM swimmer regretted her absence and said, "I love Duane as a swimmer, it's a shame that she has gone through what anyone can go through, appendicitis. I know she is training and getting ready for Kazan, and we will meet there".
About the current situation of her teammate Mireia Belmonte, Costa commented, "I haven't talked to Mireia about her injuries. The truth is that I have had enough with my own injuries and I have no idea".
The Mallorcan swimmer is very pleased and eager to face this second edition of the camp that bears her name. "The truth is that I am very happy with the promotion that the camp has received, and that such a beautiful and well-prepared camp can be consolidated. My expectations are that the children learn and improve, and that we can see their improvements on paper, in technique, and that it can be long-lasting, that they come back and new ones sign up. We can't have a bigger quota because the pool can't handle it, but I hope it is always full".