Filling the Biggest Shoes
Following in the immense footsteps of his father, Naty Alvarado Jr. became one of the greatest handball players to ever wear a pair of gloves. Ranked inside the top five from the mid 1990’s through 2014 on the pro tour, “El Tigre” solidified his standing as not only one of the game’s most prolific handball superstars in history, but also one of the most consistent. Armed with incredible discipline and dedication to his craft, Alvarado made his mark in his teens, and sat atop the sport in his 20’s and into his late 30’s.
In this exclusive WPH Interview, Filling the Biggest Shoes, “El Tigre” discusses his first start at the Junior Nationals, his motivation, his rivals, the strengths of his game, what he misses about playing pro handball, his training, and plays Word Association.
Your first junior nationals was in Chicago in 1989. You looked like a top five pro, yet you had only been playing for less than a year. How is that possible?
Top 5 Pro?? Thank you for the compliment but I was far from that. I was very fortunate to have an ability to see the form of an athlete and mimic his/her motion quickly. My brain and body have made quick learning adjustments based off of visuals. Now if you have someone try and coach me into doing something it takes me longer to break down the learning process.
What motivated you to stay at the top of the sport for more than 20 years?
At some point my mind fell into a time warp and every September I knew the handball season was about to start. At some point I think I just lost track of time. I’m often asked about who was your toughest opponent and what was your toughest match. My answer has always been the same. It was like I was playing this endless match that wouldn’t end. Not knowing the score and not understanding the expiration of time.
You played through several generations of top players. Who were your most difficult rivals throughout your 20+ year career?
Each era was different from the previous. I started playing better at the end of John Bike’s reign which led us into the Chapman, Silveyra, Munoz draw filled maze of highs and lows. Then I led the pack for a short time holding off Paul Brady and Tony Healy for a season. But once Paul took off it Handball became a sport of who would sacrifice the most off the court to win. Paul had great competition with Emmett Pexioto, David Fink, Sean Lenning, and Luis Moreno, Charlie Shanks, Robbie McCarthy and Mando Ortiz testing him. But no one matched Paul’s intensity on and off the court. So for every player I’ve played against within each era there was something special about all of them. To say that one was better than the other would cheapen the moments sacrificed by each individual player.
What do you consider to have been the strengths of your game?
The strength of my game …. I will usually avoid talking about myself and what I consider to be strengths. Aside from my Serve, I believe one of the main strengths is that I had the ability to withstand the sport of Handball evolving with each passing era with great success.
What did you enjoy most about pro handball during your career?
There’s no way to describe the overall feeling Handball gave me. Let me put this into a very simple perspective, the feeling of hitting the right shot at the right time always seemed to elevate my self-confidence on and of the court.
You are still so fit in unquestionably one of the most talented players to ever lace ‘em up. What kept you from playing for another five or 10 years?
Losing my sparring partners was a big difference maker for me. The aging process continued to sideline great players like John Bike, John Robles, and my most consistent sparring partner Chris Watkins. These constant interruptions kept me from getting the necessary reps and pro-like playing scenarios. It was a sign from up above to walk away from playing. I have been able to put a great deal of focus on my mortgage career. There have been so many positive changes for my family that the decision to focus on career was the best thing I could have done.
Could you discuss the Training 2 on 1 one matches you used to play in the High Desert to prepare for pro events?
The training part was almost my favorite part about Handball. Being held accountable, made the early training commitments that much easier to maintain. One of my favorite styles of Handball was the 2 on 1 sessions against John B. and John R. , or John R. and Chris or Chris and John B. We had some very intense training sessions in a single court with no viewing. In essence our practice sessions were so pure that it just came down to who wanted to win those much ups more than the other. So the real victory was that even after I have stopped playing handball I still have been able to maintain the early morning alarm clock wake ups to work out in my home gym.
What do you miss about playing pro Handball?
I honestly miss the travel, my dinners with Kerrie in different cities and different restaurants. I miss competing against the best players and testing myself against the other players who continue to elevate our sport. I miss the smell of the Handball court, the cracking pop of a perfectly placed kill shot. When I do these interviews I remind myself of the pure beauty of our support. It’s very tempting to come back and continue playing.
Word Association
El Gato – The Innovator
DC- The Chess player
Paul Brady- The gifted athlete
Dave V- Friend and Pro Handball’s game changer
Lupita- One of the most competitive women I know, a truly gifted athlete.
John Bike- A great teacher on and off the court
Chris Watkins- Forever indebted to every single victory, Chris just made us all better. Fiery competitor.
John Robles- Shotgun! The Entertainer!
Simple Green- maker of one of the safest cleaning products on earth and the company behind the greatest handball tournament ever.
Chasing El Gato (2020 interview) HERE
Naty Alvarado, Jr. interview (2016) HERE
Thank you to “El Tigre” for a great week on Patreon.
David Fink
WPH Patreon Writer