Behind each representative of the Barça Foundation of the Genuine League there is a story of struggle, improvement, and sacrifice to achieve dreams. Guillem Anglès García (17-11-1996, Barcelona) is one of them, and at Mundo Deportivo, we wanted to chat with him and learn about the person and the story behind the center back of the FC Barcelona team that represents the club in the Genuine League.
At 27 years old, Guillem fell into soccer unexpectedly. “I didn’t imagine that they were going to select me for the team because my thing is basketball, but I was in the Penya Special Barça, and the club was looking for players for the new team. They did tryouts, and they selected me. I couldn’t believe it; I was going to play for Barça,” confesses a culé from birth whose idols were “Xavi Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, and above all Leo Messi.”
He took his first steps in basketball in Grup Barna, and Guillem recalls being bullied because of his difficulties in speaking and relating to others. Despite this, he continued to fight to play basketball, saying, “it’s what I like the most.” However, he found a new passion when his parents introduced him to a team for people with disabilities. He ended up playing for the Spanish disabled basketball team in a Special Olympics World Cup in Abu Dhabi. Guillem describes the experience as “brutal, it was something from another world,” proudly showing off the champions’ medal he won during the tournament.
Guillem appreciates the club’s commitment to integration and emphasizes that “it helps all of us feel that we are another part of the club, that we are not an annex. Having Aitana or Alexia come to greet you, give you a hug, or high-five you is something that touches your heart.”
The message he wants to convey to the world is simple: “Inclusion is achievable, but it requires everyone to come together and believe in it.” And for boys and girls with disabilities, he also has some advice: “If you have a dream or a goal you want to reach, don’t let anyone discourage you. Keep fighting until you make it happen.”
Guillem, who brings humor to the locker room with his jokes, has a passion for history. “I really enjoy it, especially the Second World War. I love the strategic aspect of it. I am against the genocide, but I find the historical aspect fascinating. I like to look at what is not written.”
This content has been translated and adapted from the Spanish version of the digital newspaper
