The Madrid singer David Otero, handicap 10.4, was declared the winner of the 2023 edition of The Battle of Stars. Repeat a year later without pressure in this tournament that is held between Thursday the 13th and Friday the 14th, with the aim of enjoying and supporting a social cause as important as the fight against ALS and sclerosis multiple. He talks about the sporting practice of golf as a way to meditate, grow and trust in one’s own possibilities. All this, months before publishing his new album that will be titled “Natural Intelligence.”
Question: Does the champion arrive with pressure on The Battle of Stars 2024?
Answer: On the contrary, I arrive with less pressure. I have already won it so I come with the intention of enjoying. I will also tell you: the best thing about last year was not getting the victory, it was the experience of living with people you know as references and who for you are idols, talking about people like Julio Salinas, Javier Clemente, Jorge Lorenzo , etc… They are people that you admire, that you like and there was a very good vibe with them. And then, we were very lucky with our playing partners, that we were able to compete with two spectacular couples: we laughed, we had fun, we were under no pressure. And whatever happened, we won. So since we have already won, this year we are going to have a great time.
Q: From your first experience, what do you remember most fondly?
A: First, the treatment you receive. For me, Mallorca is like my second home, I have worked there many times, I have held countless concerts… Going to the islands is being at home but, also, if you know such a wonderful place on the island as the Pula Golf Resort courses and they also treat you so well, you get unique experiences. Furthermore, for me it is key that behind it there is a cause such as the fight against ALS. Support for research against diseases is very necessary. We cannot stop supporting these initiatives. I wish there was much more collective awareness around research into such difficult diseases. We know that many people receive the fruits of the grain of sand that we put in these days during the tournament.
Q: What does the sporting practice of a discipline like golf mean?
A: For my mental health it is very important. I come across golf at a time in my life when the only sport that offers me peace is surfing, but I live in Madrid. My therapist recommends that I find an outdoor sport, where you can walk and disconnect. I have a golf course next to my house, and six months later I was playing on the course. Golf is a sport of faith. When you swing, you don’t see the club, you don’t see the ball and you have to trust that you are going to hit it and direct it to the hole. It’s an act of faith. You have to trust your ability to concentrate… You work a lot with frustrations, with concentration. It is a meditative sport, with many hours walking alone through the countryside thinking about your goals. It offers me many tools for my emotional day. Furthermore, it is a very social sport, in which you meet a lot of people and, finally, from time to time you win a competition, so I can’t ask for more.
Q: Among the participants, many people from football, and ‘arrives’ as European champion…
A: Well, I am not a European champion, but I am a Real Madrid fan and I feel like a champion. This year I have lived it with great intensity with my children. They are Argentinian and they already experienced the final of the World Cup in Qatar with immense passion. We have experienced this Champions League in an amazing way with them.
Q: Your next musical work is titled “Natural Intelligence.” What’s behind that title?
A: We are immersed in an emergency social movement of artificial intelligence that is incredible. We all use it, it is part of our daily life. We are not blind and we leave technology aside. Those of us who dedicate ourselves to art, reflection and thought, have a certain concern with what is happening. In this situation, you can only investigate, think and reflect. Hence the title “Natural Intelligence” for the album that will be published in September. It is a precious moment to dialogue, confront ideas, legislate and progress based on what we should do and what we should not. It is a musical research work in which I talk about the connection of human beings through social networks, telephones, our cameras… and how we are in a dimension in which the relationship between space and time is broken and how that affects our daily life
