Agus Habif, pride in his brother Thomas and his vision of the Von der Heyde case
Agustina Paula Habif She is the eldest of the siblings (they follow her Florence, Thomas and Facundo) with a life linked to GEBA and immersed in field hockey. This time, the Olympic defender with Las Leonasspoke about his life and thoughts about the activity, but He did not forget to discuss his brother’s role in Los Leones and the situation of Lucina Von der Heyde in Germany.
The surname Habif is recognized in Argentine hockeyfor several years he has been present in the national team and the Metropolitan Tournament. Augustinethe first daughter of Marcelo and Patriciabegan the interview by commenting about how his brother, Thomashas debuted as captain of Los Leones: “It is a huge pride for everyone to represent Argentina.but having the tape gives it a plus. He’s a little embarrassed, we sent photos to the group and it was… ‘no, I’m ashamed, don’t put that on’oh well, For all of us it is very nice to see him and that he represents Argentina as well as he does.. “We are super proud of him.”
Gymnastics and Fencing, a school of life for the Habif
“Today we have to play in Germanywe choose to do it, but returning home always has that differential and see him Thomas That he can enjoy with his friends every time he is here and add from his experience, I think it’s great.”
Agustina starts every year with the Gimnasia ladies teamand then left to continue with his responsibilities at Mannheimer, but not before trying to give the best of himself to his Mens Sana family: “I have a great time with the girls, now I’m here to bring more experience than anything else because I’m already grown up.but I enjoy it a lot, I love being able to be here at the club. I did the entire preseason, as I always do, It is also trying to add to the group that is very young, that lacks a lot of experience and that there are few great players that they have today.”.
Although she still has several bullets left in the drum, the end is not that far away and the defender has clear ideas about the future: “I think so, that I am going to end up retiring from my club. It’s something I’m still thinking about.. I have a couple of years left, but yes, I think my house deserves for me to retire there. So I will have a couple more years in Germany, one or two, depending on how this year goes, how I feel physically and mentally and then come here to add to the club and say goodbye“said the oldest Olympic athlete.
The determinations that exist in Las Leonas
In the Argentine national women’s team it is ruled that in the year of competition (whether World Cup or Olympic Games) the players reside in the country to strengthen training concepts, a situation that generates divided waters between those who make up this world: “For me it’s sad. It is limiting athletes in their personal growth. I know that Argentina demands a lot and that you have to be here to train with the team, but I feel that there are players who are old enough to be allowed to go play in Europe.Others who will have to go through their process, grow here, train with the team, be 100% in Argentina, so that later at some point they will be able to have those benefits that experienced players have,” Habif began by diversifying.
And he continued, “It seems to me that limiting them does not help, it does not help mentally, it does not help economically. Here it is an amateur sport, everyone makes a lot of effort and sacrifices to be able to be 100% for their club and the national team and they receive little in return. Argentina is losing very important players such as Luchi, who unfortunately today chooses to play for another team”.
Difference between the Old Continent and South America
“I see that in Europe they don’t train what they train here and there is economic support from countries that the Argentine national teams do not have today. There is no comparison to the infrastructure we have today, I also believe that that is why they are one step ahead of us. There is a very clear decline in what people want to play, at least in Germany and what I talk about with the people in Spain, about the colleagues we have, All clubs follow that line so that later it is not a big change for the team to adapt. There are a lot of things that can be done, There are a lot of things that can be copied from abroad to improve and enhance because I think Argentina is the country with the most female hockey players in the world.“, without a doubt, and with a lot of talent and players to exploit, but we have to go step by step copying the things they do well outside and growing.”
“Obviously we have that plus, that grit and everything that Argentina haswe can accompany it by copying the things that are done well. I think both things can make Argentina become Olympic champions, which is the dream that all hockey players have, we want to see them with that medal.“Agustina assured.
The Von der Heyde case and its resolution
In mid-February, news that no Las Leonas fan wanted to hear became official.Luchi Von der Heyde will represent Germany and Agustina, being a person close to Lucina, gave her point of view on the situation that kept hockey in Argentina in suspense: “It was not an easy decisionthis comes almost three years ago, she was given the opportunity in the middle of last year, which was a call she had from the German coach and from there she began to rethink what she wanted to be, obviously always having Argentina as a priority. I know that she also approached one of the captains to chat, to see what possibility there was that they would take her into account, or what was happening, but things did not change and the athlete’s career is short, she has dreams to fulfill. Anyone who plays in an Olympic Games always leaves wanting more and Germany opened the doors for them. We are supporting her in whatever she decides, in whatever makes her happy. and wishing him well, but without a doubt it was not a simple decision and much less all those bulls… that were said to be for something economic, it has nothing to do with it, It is simply her desire to fulfill her dreams as an athlete and continue growing.”Habif concluded.
