Men
ESP
Nil LLOP IZQUIERDO
ESP- Date of birth20 Sep 2002
- ProfessionAthlete
- Home townEl Prat de Llobregat
- Place of birthBarcelona
- Start skating / Club He began roller skating at age four in El Prat de Llobregat, Spain. / CPV El Prat [roller speed skating] [ESP] / Barcelona Short Track [ESP]:
- HobbiesSports, spending time with family and friends. (Athlete, 17 Nov 2023)
- languagesCatalan, English, French, Spanish
- General Interest
- Sport Specific Information
In 2019 he was named Male Sports Hope of the Year by the Catalonian Sports Federation Union [UFEC] in Spain. (ufec.cat, 04 Dec 2019)
"Work hard, play hard. Never give up. Fight for your dreams." (Athlete, 17 Nov 2023)
US speed skater Jordan Stolz, Dutch speed skater Kjeld Nuis. (Athlete, 17 Nov 2023)
He became the first athlete representing Spain from any sport to claim a medal at the Winter Youth Olympic Games by winning silver in the 500m at the 2020 Games in Lausanne, Switzerland. (SportsDeskOnline, 04 Feb 2021; elconfidencial.com, 15 Jan 2020)
His father. (Athlete, 17 Nov 2023)
In June 2018 he fractured his fibula, his ankle, one of his fingers, his chin, and his cheekbone after crashing into a tree while trying to avoid a child during roller speed skating training in Spain. He required surgery and was out of action for almost three months. He returned to competition in early 2019. (elconfidencial.com, 15 Jan 2020; mundodeportivo.com, 09 Feb 2019, 17 Jun 2018)
He has had surgery on his ankle and his collarbone during his career. (Los Llop YouTube channel, 28 Dec 2017)
He has had surgery on his ankle and his collarbone during his career. (Los Llop YouTube channel, 28 Dec 2017)
To become an Olympic champion. (nos.nl, 17 Dec 2022)
Winning a gold medal in the junior category at the 2019 World Roller Games in Barcelona, Spain, and placing second in the 500m at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne, Switzerland. (Athlete, 17 Nov 2023; ajuntament.barcelona.cat, 11 Jul 2019)
OVERSEAS TRAINING
He regularly trains overseas in order to gain access to better training facilities, spending the northern hemisphere winter months training in Heerenveen, Netherlands, and in Inzell, Germany. "There is no track in Spain where we can train. And there comes a time where no matter how much work you've done on strength and technique, you need to skate on ice. I opted to go [overseas]. There I found the best in the sport. I arrived with the will to learn and improve." (ondacero.es, 08 Oct 2021; isu.org, 20 Feb 2021; as.com, 05 Feb 2020; elconfidencial.com, 15 Jan 2020)
He regularly trains overseas in order to gain access to better training facilities, spending the northern hemisphere winter months training in Heerenveen, Netherlands, and in Inzell, Germany. "There is no track in Spain where we can train. And there comes a time where no matter how much work you've done on strength and technique, you need to skate on ice. I opted to go [overseas]. There I found the best in the sport. I arrived with the will to learn and improve." (ondacero.es, 08 Oct 2021; isu.org, 20 Feb 2021; as.com, 05 Feb 2020; elconfidencial.com, 15 Jan 2020)
He has represented Spain in roller speed skating, and won silver in the 3000m relay track event at the 2021 European Championships in Canelas, Portugal. He has also competed in short track at junior international level. (SportsDeskOnline, 17 Nov 2023; elprat.digital, 22 Jul 2021; fcpatinatge.cat, 22 Apr 2018; mundodeportivo.com, 07 Jan 2016)
Roller skating was something of a tradition in his family. He moved on to speed skating on ice after joining a project led by the Spanish Ice Sports Federation.
Sandra Gomez [national], ESP
