Ona Carbonell wants her story to show 'it's possible to be a mother and an athlete'

When Ona Carbonell was told she could not breastfeed her son at the Tokyo Olympics, she felt she was being made to choose between her family and her sporting career.

Artistic swimmer Carbonell, 31, is a three-time Olympian and has won more than 30 major medals.

In August 2020 she gave birth to her first child — Kai — and was advised by doctors to take six months off training. She was back within four weeks, and within 11 months was ready to compete at the Olympics.

We spoke to Carbonell recently, as a film documenting her journey from giving birth to competing in Tokyo launched on Rakuten TV.

«I hope my story shows other women it's possible to be a mother and an athlete,» she says. «It's a wonderful thing.»

The film — called Starting Over — is a study in the serious sacrifices needed to juggle elite sport and motherhood. At times we see Carbonell crying in her car — too tired to drive home from training and thinking of giving up.

«I am incredibly exhausted and I'm feeling a lot of pressure,» she says. «I get home and I don't even have the energy to pick Kai up.»

Of course, this was all happening during a global pandemic too, meaning training on Zoom and plans thrown into disarray by competitions being rescheduled.

As a breastfeeding mother, among the practical impacts on Carbonell was the fact her pattern of pumping milk for Kai was disrupted.

She speaks in the film about how exhausting that can be, but says that if she doesn't do it she will feel sore and swollen.

Through it all, her drive to compete at another Olympics is clear — but the challenges don't let up.

As part of the Games' Covid-19 safety protocols, organisers initially banned athletes' families attending.

Several athletes raised the issue of breastfeeding mothers,