But Ajla is also a graduate student in Romance philology, a charismatic and energetic woman, aware that her generation will still have to bring about great changes in society, we think above all of women, the same women who acquired the right to vote only fifty years ago.
I fix an interview via zoom during one of the first autumn Mondays and when Ajla connects she is very elegant, smiling, exactly as we are used to seeing her in the newspapers. Too bad that the quality of the connection is bad, so we decide to postpone our virtual meeting for the following day. When I reconnect I find her smiling in front of me, without make-up and in overalls, but always with that contagious smile of hers, capable of creating immediate empathy.
I can feel good today, where have you settled down?
(Smiles) "I'm at my parents' house in Ascona, here the connection should be good."
I'm curious to know where you were going last night, were you in Lausanne?
"No, no, at the moment I'm in Ticino and last night I had an event at Splash and Spa in Rivera, during which an association was presented that wants to help sportsmen better plan their future, in short, it wants to avoid the problems and depressions related to the post-competitive career ».
A very interesting topic, especially since the life of a sportsman can change from one moment to the next. If I'm not mistaken, you are also a student anyway ...
“Yes, and I really like what I'm doing. I have been in Lausanne since 2015, studying history and Italian. I miss the Master's thesis, but now I absolutely want to finish it ».
Can we know what your thesis will talk about?
“I'm not sure it's a topic that interests the general public (laughs). I am analyzing manuscripts of the sixteenth century, poetic texts written in a Farnese environment (the Farnese were a noble dynasty of the Italian Renaissance). My task, if we can define it that way, is to understand in what context these poems were born and at the same time in what kind of environment the poets worked ».
There are few people who dedicate themselves to Romance philology, why this choice?
“It wasn't really a choice (nice tone). Last year, during the pandemic, we did not know exactly what would happen and when they canceled the Olympics I found myself - since I had taken a break from my studies - without a course to follow.
You can imagine my desperation… all the professors had already closed the registration to the seminars! But then, luckily or by chance, I ran into the philology professor who welcomed me with open arms and, we can say it, the subject won me over ».
As a philologist you could do a PhD or teach, is that something that interests you?
«I can't make long-term predictions, also because with a sports career I see it hard to complete a doctorate. As for teaching… maybe tomorrow. Today like today I would see myself more working in a publishing house ».
I guess you like reading a lot ...
“Yes, I like it very much. I also like to write, but nothing demanding, rather a stream of consciousness ».
What is a typical day like for a university student who also has a sporting profession?
«Let's say they are not light days (we laugh). Let's take Monday: after breakfast I go to train, of course I am flexible and it also depends on the courses I have. At noon I eat and study then I resume with the gym until six in the evening. At this point, as you can imagine, I am cooked, but I still have to cook and study because I have to recover what others have done during their day ... and not sleeping does not work, I learned it the hard way during the first year ( sympathetic tone) ".
How did you come to athletics, is it a gift? Did you already like him as a child?
«I grew up in Bignasco and in Val Maggia there was not much else to do except ice hockey and figure skating. So, like most children, I started skating and for all elementary school I did figure skating. At the same time, being always outdoors with the other children of the village, I ran in the fields and this undoubtedly helped me. When my family moved to Ascona, also because my brother played hockey in Ambrian and the trips from Bignasco were too long, I found myself in a new reality and I didn't do any sports. Then, as often happens in life, I took a UBS Kids cup in the seventh grade and I got some excellent results. At that point my mother suggested that I try athletics… it was a stroke of luck ».
I guess you are satisfied with your sports career
«Yes, yes absolutely, I am really lucky also because there are not only two or three people running and some opponents are very strong».
I can't help but talk a little bit about these Olympics, also because your results have been impressive ...
«It was the best and most intense experience of my sporting life, even if it was my second Olympics. It was all special: it was Japan, we dreamed of them for five years and therefore the wait was also very intense. I must say that I myself was surprised by my results, especially on an individual level. The fact of entering the final was already a gigantic undertaking, but then being able to be fifth (an enlightening smile), of having run 10 "91 in the heats ... is something that I still struggle to achieve months later and this makes me very happy and proud. Fourth place in the relay made me a bit hurt, I knew we could get a medal and I believed in it a lot, but now that's how sport is… not everything goes as expected. In any case we must be proud that Switzerland can fight with other great nations, we are talking about the United States, Jamaica and England, in short, we are in good shape (laughs happily) ».
You said you were surprised at yourself. That day, when you ran on an individual level, what happened? Was everything perfect?
«Those two days of the 100 meters there was really everything, I felt at the top of the top for a week and a half, the training was going well, I had regained the confidence of winter, when I won my European title on 60 meters. So on a mental level I was very concentrated and happy, on a physical level I had never been so ready and therefore there were all the prerogatives to make the exploit ».
How do you handle media criticism?
“This year I have tried everything. I was the indoor European champion in March and therefore all the media gave me visibility, then I took the covid and in April, I'm honest, I had a hard time getting back. Immediately the newspapers criticized me, they began to say that I was no longer in shape as before, others said that I had not trained ... instead I was simply struggling to recover. There are always these two sides to the coin, but I am aware of the fact that we have to place our affections in loved ones, in family, in friends. If they support me and stay close to me, everything else takes a back seat. There will always be someone who will want to criticize me, a speech that applies to all of us, and this not only in sport ».
Is today's Ajla very different from the one that ran in the fields in Val Maggia?
«For me it has never been an option to change, also because I come from a country with just over 300 inhabitants and if I happen to see someone who knew me as a young man, I want to give the impression of always being the same person. It is clear that as a woman I have evolved, I can be more sure of myself, but on a character level I do not see myself changed ".
Independence of the woman. Fifty years ago, women got the right to vote. You are a fresh generation, maybe it is normal for you to vote, but as you see the woman today, would you like something to change?
“In my entourage, women know what they want and don't need someone else to do it. It is true that I am in a sports environment and this is an indispensable feature for making a career, but I also see it with my friends, they have gone their own way and nothing and nobody can stop them. We are certainly a generation with a lot of energy, a generation that wants to have its say. Personally, if there are somewhat sexist discourses, I intervene and point it out (smiles), also because it is a question of sensitivity ».
How is the situation at a sporting level?
“We often talk about it among ourselves. In athletics, especially in Switzerland where it is women's athletics that bring great results, this discrimination does not exist. On the other hand, it is inevitable that a man runs faster than a woman ... we should use this sporting approach also in everyday life, we need to know how to adapt to individual abilities, valuing people for what they are and can give, regardless of gender. ".
When it comes to wages, are there any major wage disparities?
“It's hard to tell you because I've never seen a male athlete's contract at the same level as me. But I can imagine these things are laminating slightly, I hope so. Inequalities are probably more present in everything that revolves around sport, such as advertising contracts.
But is there the will, I think of you now as an athlete, to improve the conditions of sporty women? Does your generation want to be heard?
"Yes, absolutely. There is a great desire to be heard, even on ecological issues. We know that there must be a change and this change must come from us because we are the future of society ".
And what about a woman's sporting career? Is pregnancy still seen as an obstacle?
«Before when you were over thirty, everyone thought you were over, especially if you decided to become a mother. Now, however, things are changing, there are athletes who have had children and returned stronger than before, they have won medals and shown that it can be done and for us they are a great inspiration ».
Are we doing enough for Ticino's sporting talents?
«I think much more can be done, but often there are no adequate structures, but basically two things are missing: professional coaches, I'm not talking about hockey or football, and the will to recognize the profession of sportsman. We must stop saying that sport is not a job! How many times have I heard myself ask: "What are you doing à coté?" and I replied that athletics, running, was my job. We must be able to remove this prejudice, support young sportsmen who must be able to try to become professionals without sacrificing part of their studies and their future ».
You are very attached to Ticino. Will you come back?
"When I left for Lausanne I didn't have the desire to return to Ticino, but now yes, I'm always happy to be home, especially because my life has already taken me to so many places ... but honestly I don't know where I'll be in five years . But I can say that if I don't see my mountains for a while I miss them very much (moved) ».
To finish what you say to very young girls
«Create your own spaces. In my career I have found myself comparing myself with other athletes, but in the end it is important to know that everyone has their own path and comparing oneself to others is useless. Trust your path, trying to control what is controllable. Everything we cannot control is better to let it go, it only steals our energy ».
I chose the title "Stronger Than Before" while transcribing the interview. A sporty woman who returns to the track after a pregnancy and wins, demonstrating that physical and mental have an incredible potential, often underestimated. This applies to all of us, there are moments in which we are forced to stop, but this does not mean that we cannot start again and above all nothing prevents us from becoming stronger than before.
