Maider Olleta

Maider Olleta
Olleta (second from left) on the podium of the 1993 Group Masters.
Personal information
Full name	Maider Olleta Pérez
Born	(1977-10-10) 10 October 1977 (age 47) Pamplona, Spain
Gymnastics career
Discipline	Rhythmic Gymnastics
Country represented	Spain
Years on national team	1993
Level	International Elite
Club	Sociedad Cultural Deportivo Recreativa Anaitasuna
Head coach(es)	Ana Roncero
Assistant coach(es)	María Fernández Ostolaza
Choreographer	Georgi Neykov
Retired	yes
Medal record Rhythmic Gymnastics Representing  Spain European Championships 1993 Bucharest All-Around 1993 Bucharest 4 Hoops + 4 Clubs

Maider Olleta Pérez (born 10 October 1977) is a retired Spanish rhythmic gymnast. She is a double bronze medalist at the European Championships.

Biography

Olleta began doing gymnastics at the age of 3 at the Anaitasuna Recreational Sports Cultural Society of Pamplona, where she continued doing rhythmic gymnastics until she reached the national team in 1993, at the age of 15. In 1992 she won the gold medal with ball in the Spanish Championships of San Sebastián and the silver medal in 1st category in the Spanish Groups Championship in Malaga.

In 1993 she was incorporated into the national senior group.^[1] Ana Roncero became national head coach and María Fernández Ostolaza joined as coach of the group. After many of the previous group members retired Maider, Carolina Borrell, Cristina Martínez, Alicia Martín, Bárbara Plaza and Pilar Rodrigo, with María Álvarez, Regina Guati, Lorena Barbadillo, Paula Cabo and Eva Velasco as substitutes, constituted the new national group.^[2] At the European Championships in Bucharest, the Spanish group won the bronze medal in the All-Around and with 4 hoops & 4 clubs, taking 6th place with 6 ropes.^[3] In September 1993 they competed at the Gymnastic Masters in Stuttgart, where they were 4th in both the All-Around and in the final of 4 hoops & 4 clubs, winning bronze with 6ropes.^[4] In the Group Masters of Alicante were silver in the All-Around and gold in the two apparatus finals. In Alicante the group was already made up of Maider, María Álvarez, Lorena Barbadillo, Paula Cobo, Regina Guati, Cristina Martínez, Alicia Martín and Eva Velasco. At the Wacoal Cup in Tokyo they won the bronze medal.

After her retirement she studied at the University of the Basque Country Faculty of physical activity and sports sciences of Vitoria (1996 - 2001). In 2008 she opened her own pilates studio, Mao Studio Pilates, in Pamplona where she currently works as a physical education teacher and instructor. She practices sports such as swimming, skiing and kitesurfing.

After Emilia Boneva's death on 20 September 2019, Maider and other former national gymnasts gathered to pay tribute to her during the Euskalgym held on 16 November 2019. The event took place before 8,500 attendees at the Bilbao Exhibition Centre de Baracaldo and was followed by a dinner in Boneva's honor.^[5]

References

1. Fernández del Valle, Aurora (1995). Gimnasia rítmica deportiva: aspectos y evolución. ISBN 978-84-85977-60-4.
2. "Complicated challenge for Spanish women in the European".
3. "9. (4. Junior) European Championships in Bucharest, Romania (20.-23. May 1993)". r-gymnast.bplaced.net. Retrieved 2024-03-20.
4. "3.Gymnastic Masters in Stuttgart, Germany (4.-5. September 1993)". r-gymnast.bplaced.net. Retrieved 2024-03-20.
5. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2024-01-31.^{[self-published]}