Juan Ozón, Jarry’s trainer: “Nico is starting to lead his career; today he takes his life in hand”

Juan Ozón (Barcelona, ​​September 8, 1979) is passionate when he talks about tennis, even more so if it is about the project he is carrying out with Nicolás Jarry and which today has the Chilean on the verge of returning to the top 100 after three years and after starting from scratch in 2021.

“Last season was key, because there were a lot of changes in habits. Nico had just come out of a difficult time. The progression was very good where it came from. He was able to adapt to changes in coaching and in the situation; start from scratch… And for me what he did last year has a brutal value. If the ranking had not been frozen, we would have finished 107″, begins by saying the technician.

The last few weeks have been very good for Nico. He returned to the quarter-finals of an ATP after three years and left very positive feelings in his Gstaad stage, where he was only one point away from qualifying for the semi-finals.

“This year we have dedicated ourselves to continuing to work on these changes that we have made and in particular on the mental issue, which is 90% of the game. He was already coming out of some mental procedures that were largely his, and that We tried to change these patterns and improve them because, for me and the rest of the team, the mental and emotional aspect is non-negotiable. “, maintains the trainer.

This aspect has become one of the obsessions of Ozón, who affirms that “things are always worked on at the physical, technical and tactical level, but what helps to put the rest together is the mental and the emotional; how he manages in the moments of his life; after a victory or after a defeat… ”.

“The mental aspect is letting you know how to play the different situations the game gives you and for that you need to be calm and confident. Now what we’re trying to do is, feeling good or bad, he participates in every game, and this part of the year, he does. He won many games because of his mentality and because he was there “, precise.

Even if the beginning of the season was complex, over the months the work has solidified. “The year has been more or less uneven, but we are able to compete at a good level and do it whatever the feeling. This year is not so much about changing, but about continuing to work on what has been done “, he argues.

For this 2022, the technical staff has undergone some changes. “I needed reinforcements,” admits Ozón. That’s how César Fábregas, who was Pablo Carreño’s coach, joined him. “He will help us this year for about 12 weeks, since he also shares Nico with Francesca Jones, and this year I will do about 35 weeks. . We are in constant contact, because César is a great human and professional contribution. Nico’s physical trainer is Toni Estalella, who joined us a few months ago. I shared with him the work with Raonic, with Khachanov… He had been with Corretja, Costa and Feliciano López. It’s a more mature profile, listening a lot,” he explains.

Another new addition to the team is María Antonia Lizárraga, an eminence in sports medicine and nutrition. “The doctor was linked with Barcelona and worked with Messi. It helps us with supplementation, habits, even to regulate nervous fatigue; how to sleep and rest explains Ozón, who does not hide his satisfaction with the team that has been formed: “These are people I wanted to work with, I think Nico is very happy and he feel comfortable”.

From being a promising junior to suffering injuries while jumping. It was the transition that led Juan Ozón to a metamorphosis: “I played tennis and I devoted a lot of time to it. I was a good junior, I had sponsors who allowed me to travel, but when I turned professional, between injuries and others, it was over. From 21 to 24 years old I was a coach, I was with a girl who was 230 years old in the world and with a boy who was 500″, he recalls.

But a question had to be answered. “I went to study physiotherapy because I wanted to find the answer to why I had been so hurt “says the professional, who studied in the United States and in his country.

To pay for his career, he worked with tennis promises and the management of an academy. “Later, a doctor started giving me a job and I started getting in touch with the Spanish Tennis Federation and the Athletics Federation. Suddenly, I see myself again with Milos Raonic, who was 17 years old and had not exploded. I trained him for a few months, then I trained an Australian girl. Then Galo Blanco asked me if he could work with Karen Khachanov and I trained him too, he was not just a physio. I was also with Fognini, Penetta, Kevin Anderson, Marcelo Granollers… “, he lists.

When Jarry appears in his life, the Catalan had left a management project in the Premier League, so his sporting vision covered many aspects. “For things in life, I wanted to go back to my origins in tennis and Nico came. We started with Cristóbal Saavedra, a very good and professional person, who trained Gonzalo Lama, and there was a good pack. Then I continued”, he says about these beginnings.

“In the first year, many changes were made. From how to learn without filters, to understand what faulty mental mechanics we had and above all, what we coaches have to do, to give the players tools so that they lead their own path and always accompany them. At first he had to pull more from Nico, but now he’s starting to lead his race. Today, he is a father who takes his life in hand and this transition is not easy. It works on many aspects, but I give it a 10 “, he expresses.

As for the objectives set, the technician is eloquent. “There are always goals, but the most important thing is performance. If he performs well in all areas: physical, mental, emotional, Nico can reach the top. And now, with the whole team, our main obsession is to focus on performance, because he’s been on his feet and the results from before are part of his anxiety to come back, and that’s a mistake, because he has to come back with a better version than before. One thing is to reach 38 in the world and another thing is to be a 38 player in the world he reflects.

And he insists: “I would like to think that we will break into the top 100 and a little better this year and that little by little we will solidify everything so that Nico remains and is a top player; that he likes the trip and that he can compete at a high level every week”.

In the immediate future, Jarry will play the Challenger 125 in Vancouver, in 10 more days. “Then we will go to the US Open qualifiers, where we also wait if we enter the doubles. This is where the Davis Cup in Peru comes from and finally we will choose the tournaments to go to, but our idea is to go to the ATP ranking ”.