The Urroz: Brothers of the World Cup

The Urroz are not just any family . Its history is also the history of Chilean sport. At family dinners, vacations and road trips, there was always room for a sporting anecdote or the memory of a pristine moment. Always said in the first person. And it is that the sporting heritage of the family begins with Francisco Urroz, goalkeeper of the Chilean team who played in the 1950 World Cup and who will later testify to his daughter Silvana, one of the best players national tennis courts of the 70s. Four decades later, it was the goalkeeper’s grandchildren who put the family name back in the national top flight.

It’s about Manuela and Francisco. She being the emblem of Las Diablas during the revolution led by Sergio Cachito Vigil. Him, being part of the two teams who came to change the reality of national rugby , and just with the name of his grandfather. They are the legacy of Urroz, but also an example of a Chile that opens the doors to new disciplines, after years of systematic invisibility. His stories astound for this and for the strikingness of his family. They recount here their journey to become what they are and the special relationship they have, marked by sport and competition.

“In our family, sport runs in the blood. We have a footballer grandfather and a tennis player aunt. We were born with them and from an early age we were trained in the sport” he begins by telling Jock Manuela. In the middle of his vacation, he takes the time to talk and open the doors of his family history. He says they have always been very Outside, who spent their time playing and practicing different sports. But he also admits that he has not always had hockey as his favorite sport, since at the beginning he played tennis, like his aunt.

Silvana Urroz was an example for Manuela in those early years. The former professional tennis player managed to play in the Wimbledon, Roland Garros and US Open tournaments and became 117 in the world, the best singles record for a Chilean in WTA records.

“When I was younger there might not have been so many references, but I had the story of my aunt, so since I was a girl I intended to be an athlete. In fact, I came across jobs that I was doing at school at the time and where at the age of eight I said that I wanted to be a professional tennis player”, admits the eldest of the Urroz Richters.

But at school he finally changed the racket for the stick and that’s where the switch change took place. The moment that desire began to turn into a goal: “I always dreamed of playing sports, but obviously when I entered the minor teams, I realized the desire to be a Diabla, to travel the world, to play in a professional league.

Unknowingly, the decision ended up being a key motivation for Francisco (two years younger than Manuela) to become a top athlete as well. “She started with the hockey training processes before me, so when we went with my family to drop her on the bus for the tours, it started to catch my attention. When the opportunity to travel presented itself, I didn’t think twice and took the same path,” says the back national to The third.

July 2022 will forever be remembered by the Urroz brothers. This is where they both made history. Manuela for playing in the first field hockey World Cup in the country and Francisco for winning the heroic qualification for France 2023 with the Cóndores. A month where they were apart, but together at the same time, despite changing schedules, tight schedules and constant training. The two closely followed each other’s performances.

Francisco did it in company, in the middle of the concentration for the duel against the United States. It was a time when, although he was focused on the most important game of his career, he had his energies focused on what his sister was doing. “I watched the World Cup games with my teammates, who are also always interested in following Chilean sport. We watched the games together in concentration, in the hotel and with a mobile phone. I was very happy with the result they obtained”, says the rugby player.

Manuela’s version is not far from what her brother experienced. “I had to watch the games from Holland but always with constant calls and messages. The second leg they had against USA was a time of great joy and jokingly I told him that now my parents were going to have to go to France to see it, because at that time they were in Amsterdam watching me,” he says. .. in a tone full of happiness.

Amid this memory, the conversation turns to what it’s like to have another elite athlete as a sibling. One who, although not challenging the same discipline, has an authorized voice to speak about the actions of the other. “We are very transparent with each other. When we go to see the matches, we give ourselves feedback. We also understand each other… It’s sometimes difficult to talk to friends about the sacrifices that this entails and with him we understand each other perfectly and we always accompany each other very closely”, says Manuela.

In the conversation each had separately with El Deportivo (Manuela in Italy and Francisco on his way to Valparaíso for an act in Congress) the brothers tackled a common theme. The characteristics they see in each other. An answer that can be summed up in one word: commitment.

“What I highlight the most is the commitment to the team and its goals. She was in the national team for many years, maybe not in the best of conditions and she kept going and going, she has maintained her consistency over the years. The question of perseverance is something that has characterized her in her sporting career,” says Francisco.

“What I highlight the most is the commitment to the team and its goals. She was in the national team for many years, maybe not in the best of conditions and she kept going and going, she has maintained her consistency over the years. The question of perseverance is something that has characterized her in her sporting career,” says Francisco.

Manu gives a very similar answer: “He is passionate and very disciplined. These two things characterize him. He is also a very good teammate. Having studied this career (medicine) made him very disciplined. He’s a very good leader.”

The selected, and lawyer, ends the dialogue with a sentence that summarizes the similarities between the Urroz brothers. “We are similar on the pitch. Sometimes he tells me that I get even more angry, but he also gets angry a lot, we are very passionate about what we do, we are also very studious. I like to watch a lot of hockey, analyze, and so does he. I piss him off because sometimes I feel like he watches the games 30 times. I always tell him, how many times did you watch the game? I go to his room and I always find him there”, he concludes. Two brothers linked by history, life and sport.