The reinvention of Iñaki Urdangarin

Iñaki Urdangarin (1968) became a free citizen again on April 9, 2024, after serving the five-year, ten-month sentence imposed by the courts for various crimes stemming from the Nóos case. Fourteen months later, he welcomed La Vanguardia to a Barcelona hotel to explain his feelings for the first time. It's an Iñaki Urdangarin who speaks calmly and deliberately, conveying his desire to reinvent himself "through simplicity." He knows he's been many "Iñakis" throughout his life, "with their ups and downs," but he concludes that "the sum of those Iñakis is what has made me who I am. All the phases have helped me become the Iñaki I am today. They all have things to learn from."

Urdangarin lives in Vitoria with his partner after divorcing Infanta Cristina, with whom he maintains an excellent relationship. He doesn't forget the 40 years he lived in Catalonia. "After leaving prison, I settled in Vitoria, due to my third degree, because I had to have a job, and it was a starting point. I saw it as a city that is very comfortable for me, familiar because I spent a few years of my childhood there. I have lived in Catalonia for 40 years, I have had four children in Catalonia, and most of my friends and family are in Catalonia. Building the corridor between Vitoria and Barcelona is familiar to me, something normal."

I have reconnected with many things of simplicity, which is what I most desire.”

She says her life is normal these days. “It’s very routine. I get up early, exercise, go to work afterward, and then I pursue different hobbies and do housework with my partner. When I have my children, I enjoy them. It’s an organized life. I’ve reconnected with simple things, which after all the stages of my life is what I look forward to most: seeing school friends again. I’ve had very complicated years in which you focus on your defense. My life now doesn’t appeal to anyone. I feel like time has slipped away, and I want to make the most of it,” she says.

I have a bit of a feeling that time has slipped away from me and I want to make the most of it.”

Just because his life isn't attracting attention doesn't mean it's empty of content, because Iñaki Urdangarin is immersed in launching Bevolutive, a coaching brand with sports ramifications. "After leaving prison, you come to the conclusion that you're not going to be what you were before. There was a need for many changes, both personal, to analyze what happened and where we may or may not have made mistakes, but there was also a question of opportunity. I had the chance to reinvent myself in something that I think can be of great value to me and to bring together all the things that had happened to me."

I want to dedicate myself to helping people, athletes and business executives.”

With this desire, he used his time in prison to better understand himself, with the idea of ​​sharing his experiences to help others. “While in prison, I began studying for a master's degree in coaching psychology and emotional well-being. I began training to get out and help other people consider any challenge, motivation, or skill they want to improve because I believe my exceptional experiences, combined with the training I've acquired, can be helpful. Based on my own self-knowledge, I can lead myself and be able to support others.” He just needed someone to give him the opportunity. “This happened about a year ago. It's a project that's now taking hold and one in which I feel incredibly useful. I want to dedicate myself to helping people, athletes, and business executives overcome difficult times or set new goals in leadership or team management.”

He does this through Bevolutive "because we're constantly evolving, no matter what. I'm trying to carve out a niche for myself in this space of helping others." He doesn't want it to be a superlative project, but rather "to have a small client base and be able to personally involve myself in each one of them."

I need to be seen as someone who has stood up after everything that happened and is here to offer something.”

When asked if the hardest thing for him was getting people to trust him again, he responds firmly: “They've learned about Iñaki Urdangarin as a character through public opinion, not as a person. They don't know what my concerns are. For that, I need opportunities. If we come with the mask of the character, then obviously that's going to be very difficult. But if we come with the mask of the person, of giving an opportunity to someone who's reinventing themselves, that's a different story. Looking at the person with eyes that say, 'This man has gotten back on his feet after everything that's happened to him and he's here to offer something, why not give him a chance?'”

In prison, I began studying a master's degree in coaching psychology and emotional well-being.

He had time to reflect during his time in prison, during which time he sought out the tools to "be able to survive in there." As he said, he studied, learned to meditate, and to understand himself better, and also implemented routines that he details. "In the morning, I had breakfast and studied until about 3 p.m. Then I exercised. In the afternoon, I devoted myself to other types of reading, and then I wrote letters. That also helped me a lot. So, the catharsis of writing, the catharsis of reading a novel that takes you somewhere else, helped a lot. I also studied the newspapers when visitors brought them to me. I was very organized. And that organization has been very good for me."

As for his studies, in addition to earning his national handball coaching degree, there was a book that helped him. "Have you read Viktor E. Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning ? It's the best-selling book after the Bible. It's a book in which he is a clinical psychiatrist and experiences the concentration camps. He said that you have to hold on to something that gives you meaning to overcome whatever you're going through. I read it, reread it, summarized it, studied it, and I use it in coaching sessions. In the end, I also considered that there were people outside who loved me, who were struggling just as I was in prison. The human capacity to survive is much greater than we think," Urdangarin explains.

All my life stages have helped me become the Iñaki I am today; they all have things to learn from.”

As for exercise, she never left the stationary bike alone. “For a thousand days. It was the only thing I had on hand. And now I still do the elliptical every morning. You can't imagine the wonderful memories I have of how much these types of machines helped me. Stationary bikes give me this positive reminder of things that have helped me improve.”

Among the various Iñakis, the one whose face shines the most is his past as an elite athlete (6 Champions League titles , 10 La Liga titles, 2 Olympic medals). From this perspective, he particularly values ​​the fact that Barça has never taken its number 7 shirt off the Palau Blaugrana. “I value it, of course I do, because the various presidents have been under pressure, and it's not easy, at a time when the tide is so negative, to hold the line. That shirt is there because of sporting achievements, because of the deeds of a team that was magnificent.”

I really appreciate how Barça has treated me and that they haven't retired my shirt from the Palau."

His connection with Barça remains just as close. “I really value how the club has treated me. During my internship as a national handball coach, I had the opportunity to interview and work with players from the Barça youth academy. When I come from Vitoria, I walk through Sant Joan Despí and stop there. It feels so natural for me to stop by and say hello and continue seeing those who are still here, with Xavi O'Callaghan, Antonio Carlos Ortega, Enric Masip, Tomas Svensson… there are people from my generation. They're like a second family. Because sport has a connection like nothing else. What you experience is so intense during those years that it stays with you for the rest of your life. That at 57, we're having dinners with the handball dream team is very nice.” Of course, they no longer play veterans' matches. “As they would say in Catalonia, 'ens faríem mal, és millor anar a sopar (laughs)'.”

Talking about handball and talking about his son Pablo, a player for Fraikin Granollers, is one and the same. “I'm very hard on him, ha ha. But Pablo is fantastic because he listens. I gave him three pieces of advice: humility, that if he believed in something, the next day he wouldn't be anything. Then I also told him that to play handball, he has to have a warrior's attitude. You can't be half-hearted or complain about not being selected or playing in a position you don't like. And third, managing wins and losses, where after the wins, you start from scratch, and after the losses, you can draw good things for the future.”

And if not, he could send him to Valero Rivera (his former coach at Barça), Urdangarin is suggested. To which he responds affectionately and with a laugh. “It was a different time, it was very hard to withstand the pressure because it was extremely demanding, but it was also a very strong culture of performance, humility, courage, and the belief that together we are worth more than separately. I have never had enough of these things.” That's why when his son Pablo was hesitating between handball and other sports, he was clear about it. “I told him, 'Look, Pablo, I believe more in team sports; as a person, you'll develop much better. And I would recommend that you take something that makes the most of your talents.' And he listened.”

The conversation ends, and Iñaki Urdangarin stands up with the same pause and calm with which he spoke. He has been able to explain and expand. This is the story of the reinvention of the new Iñaki.