She is looking at her phone and, when she raises her head and sees us, she smiles and agrees to answer some questions. We want to know if she understands that now her status is not the same, from now on everyone will look at her differently because she is the world champion.
On Wednesday Mamira won the gold medal at the World Judo Championships Cadets, which are held in Almaty, in the -40kg category. The Hungarian, second seeded, defeated Chiara Antonina Dispenza in the final.
“I was very nervous,” says Mamira. We try to imagine her mood before the final contest. A young woman about to turn fifteen, in a distant country, with stands crowded with fans and young judoka, a world title at stake and a virtually unbearable pressure on her shoulders. The champions are made of a different substance. When the technical level is identical, victory depends on the mental factor. Mamira belongs to that select group.
"My coach calmed me down, told me to breathe and do what I know how to do, to practice my judo without complexes”.
Said and done, as an attentive student. The Hungarian neutralized the strategy of the Italian because, from the beginning, she went out to win looking for a deadly attack. And it took less than a minute to execute ippon and conquer the title.
Mamira perfectly illustrates the importance of having a proper structure. You need talent, true, but without a good coach, who deals with the technical and psychological aspects, judoka, no matter how good they are, will be helpless to face the greatest challenges.
Mamira enjoys a solid and professional environment, the result is in sight. And she lives it with the naturalness of a teenager who discovers the taste of victory in forced marches.
“It's very exciting to be a champion. Now, when I wake up in the morning, I can say loud and strong that I am world champion”. It is not an arrogant statement because she expresses it with joy, as the happy outcome of many months of work. "I hope it is the beginning of a long series of successes," she concludes.
Our conclusion is that Luca Mamira, a judo World champion, has understood her change of status and, at least at first glance, it does not seem to affect her.