Mónica Ferrández Arenas (born 25 October 1974) is a Spanish former

rhythmic gymnast Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon and rope. The sport combines elements of gymnastics, dance and calisthenics; gymnasts must be strong, fle ...

and coach. She is also a European and World medalist.

Career

Ferrández took up the sport at age 6 as an extracurricular activity. After a few months, she started training at the Club Atlético Montemar until being invited to the national team in 1988. In 1990, she won bronze at the Spanish national championships behind Ada Liberio and Noelia Fernández. That November, she was selected for the

European Championships A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

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, where she won the team bronze along with

Carolina Pascual Carolina Pascual Gracia (born 17 June 1976 in Orihuela, Alicante) is a former Spanish Individual Rhythmic gymnastics, Rhythmic Gymnast. She is the Gymnastics at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Women's rhythmic individual all-around, 1992 Olympics s ...

and Noelia Fernández. Individually, she placed 7th in the all-around. In October 1991, she competed at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

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, where she was 6th in the all-around, 5th with rope, 7th with hoop, 6th with ball, and 7th with clubs. She won bronze in the team competition along with her teammates

Carmen Acedo Carmen Acedo Jorge (born 10 February 1975 in Lérida, Spain) is a retired individual rhythmic gymnast from Spain. Biography Acedo competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Ol ...

and

. At the national championships, she won silver behind Carolina Pascual and ahead of

Carolina Borrell Carolina Borrell Penades is a former Spanish rhythmic gymnast who competed in the Spanish national rhythmic gymnastics team. As an individual, she achieved bronze both in teams and in clubs at the 1991 European Junior Championships in Lisbon, whi ...

. In the 1991 Spanish Cup Final, held in Malaga, she tied for gold with her teammate Carmen Acedo. She retired in 1992 because of

plantar fasciitis Plantar fasciitis or plantar heel pain is a disorder of the plantar fascia, which is the connective tissue that supports the Arches of the foot, arch of the foot. It results in pain in the heel and Sole (foot), bottom of the foot that is usuall ...

in her left foot. After her retirement, she became a coach. From 2012 to 2013, she was the coach of the national junior group, together with Yolanda Andrés. The group was members were Claudia Heredia Paula Gómez, Sara González, Miriam Guerra, Carmen Martínez, and Victoria Plaza. In May 2013, the group competed at the

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

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, where they finished in 16th place in the all-around. Currently, Ferrández is the coordinator of the of

Torrevieja Torrevieja (; is a Mediterranean-seaside city and municipality on the Costa Blanca, in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, in southeastern Spain. The city is in one of the only Spanish-speaking areas of the Valencian Community. Tor ...

in Alicante, where she also teaches. Ferrández also coached national team gymnast

Polina Berezina Polina Berezina Ksenofontova (born 5 December 1997) is a Russian-born Spanish individual Rhythmic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnast. She has competed at seven Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships and won a bronze medal with the Spanish team in 2 ...

from 2004 to 2016 and began coaching her again in 2018. Berezina became part of the Spanish junior team in 2013 and turned senior in 2014; she competed at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

. Ferrández trains Berezina individually at the Palacio de los Deportes in Torrevieja and travels with her to competitions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrandez, Monica 1974 births Living people Spanish rhythmic gymnasts Medalists at the Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships Medalists at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships Sportspeople from Córdoba, Spain Gymnastics coaches