Manuel Piñero, captain of the men’s Olympic golf team at the Rio 2016 Games, has declared at the La Reserva de Sotogrande club, in San Roque (Cádiz), that this function would correspond first to the late Severiano Ballesteros and then to José María Olazábal, and that is why he considers himself “the substitute for the substitute”.
“For me the real captain is Seve, for everything he meant to world and Spanish golf. Since he is no longer with us, his position should be for Chema, but his physical problems prevent him from being the captain. So I am the substitute for the substitute,” said Piñero in a meeting that included Sergio García, Chema Olazábal and the captains of the national golf teams of Belgium, Denmark, Italy and Portugal that will participate in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Piñero also placed his position at Olazábal’s disposal. “If Chema feels better and feels strong enough to be the captain, I will gladly hand over the captaincy to him. I would be willing to take care of the botijo,” he said.
Olazábal clarified that the decision to resign for health reasons from the Olympic Games “is firm and there is no turning back”.
“It was a very hard decision because the Olympic Games are very special and I would have been tremendously excited,” said the player from Guipuzcoa, a two-time Masters winner who suffers from a rheumatic disease.
Piñero believes that the return of golf to the Olympic program after 112 years of absence is “cause for celebration” because it is “a great boost” for the sport. An opinion shared by Olazánal: “The Olympic Games are going to be a way for golf to reach places where it is not yet popular, and it will be very important for the new generations to get closer to the sport. I think we will reap the rewards in 15 or 20 years”.
Piñero wants Seve Ballesteros to be present in Rio de Janeiro in some way: “We will think of something, but Seve will be there with us because we represent Spain, but also Ballesteros.” As to what his role will be in this summer’s Olympic Games, Piñero, 63, said that he will mainly try to ensure that the players representing Spain prepare themselves “as for another competition, that they do it as they do to face a major tournament”.
Spain will be represented at Rio 2016 by two players according to the world rankings as of July 11. The best placed are Sergio Garcia from Castellón (15th in the world) and Rafa Cabrera Bello from Gran Canaria (30th). “I am still a probable Olympian, but if I am there it will be an honor to represent my country. I’ve always been a big fan of the Games. Being an Olympian is a great opportunity and I’m very excited about it,” Garcia commented.
Also present at the La Reserva event were José María Cañizares, the CEO of Sotogrande S.A., Marc Topiol, and the president of international relations of the European Tour, George O’Grady.
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