In handball, statistics are everywhere: goals scored, saves made, percentage of saves. They all tell a story.

For Spain’s Danila So Delgado Pinto, who entered the second week of the 2025 IHF Women’s World Championship as overall top-scorer (29 goals in four games), she can tell that story in multiple different languages: Spanish, Portuguese, Guinea-Bissau Creole, English, French and now, Romanian – just one of the abundant talents and skills outside of a handball court that she possesses.

“It was the way I was raised,” says the engaging 24-year-old from the lobby of her hotel in Dortmund where her and her Spain team are based for the main round. “For immigrants, it is normal to grow up like this and there are many girls or boys and people in this same situation. I then had English at school in Spain where I have been living for my most of my life (she moved to Zaragoza at just one month old), so, by the age of the three, I was already hearing four languages.

“This world of communicating was always interesting for me – being able to change between languages to speak with my cousins, my friends or even with my parents. My basic thoughts are in Spanish, because that’s the language I use the most in my relationships, but I’ve dreamt before in English and I woke up and thought ‘that was weird’.”I’m a really,really big fan of history of the world,” adds the player,who is rapidly approaching 50 national team appearances. “It really shows me how people managed through community, and how things change between. Language is a very good way to understand and learn about how the community spread and how it worked. It’s a really big interest of mine to learn new languages wherever I go to because now, I’m playing in Romania, I’m trying my best with Romanian.”

That move to Romania came back in June 2024, when So Delgado joined gloria Bistrița from ATTICGO BM Elche, moving out of her comfort zone as a person and a player as she looked to step up her career in a league featuring some of the best players in the world.

“It has been very hard. I consider myself a mature person and I already knew it was going to be a big challenge, because it was a big change in every sense: I was living on my own, completely by myself and having to face a new team that I barely knew people in,” explains the player, who has scored 44 goals in the EHF Champions League this season.

“Feeling that loneliness for the first time was very overwhelming, and it was hard for me, but I had my parents, my boyfriend and my friends [to support me]. I had to learn a new language as maybe there were people that would not speak in English, so it was not a very big step to overcome, as I was very, very keen on learning Romanian.

“It is indeed vital for me as it makes a connection with the people you’re living with. Being in their own country and them seeing that you’re trying makes them more comfortable with someone that’s foreign; they see that you’re trying to appreciate their culture, the way they communicate, the way they manage themselves – that brings people together.”

And that experience in Romania, playing in a club alongside Spanish national teammates Paula Arcos and Kaba Gassama, amongst others, plus a variety of internationals, including Cristina Laslo, Larissa Nusser and Fujita Asuka, in a league pac

So Delgado: Family, Mental Health, and Handball dreams

So Delgado, a rising star in handball, credits her family as her biggest support system, even when distance keeps them apart. While they’d love to be at every game, she knows they’re always just a phone call away. They constantly check in on her, not just about handball, but also her studies and mental wellbeing.

“I know they would love to come and see me play and go with me wherever I go, but the possibilities aren’t like this, but they are always a phone call away. They are always super-worried about me and how I’m doing, not only handball but my studies, my mental state; they are my main support in my life,” she explains.

With mental health openly discussed in 2025, support for wellbeing is increasingly common in handball, and Delgado’s generation is benefitting from greater awareness and understanding of these issues.

“It’s a fact that if you take care of your mental health, you’ll perform better and maintain better relationships – it’s very, very important. having a clear mind before games and training, and setting goals, is crucial for career progression,” Delgado says.

“I have a personal mental coach, and I recommend this to everyone, not just athletes, because it really helps you understand where you are and what you’re trying to achieve.”

Delgado-pinto dreams of Olympic qualification with Spain, winning an IHF World Championship, and a Champions League title at club level. Her handball journey began at home,inspired by a powerful role model.

One of her earliest handball memories is watching the legendary alexandrina Cabral ‘Shandy’ Barbosa play for Spain on television.

That image changed her life.

“As a nine-year-old watching handball for the first time on TV and seeing someone who looks just like me – a Black person playing handball,a woman,a leader – it was so representative for me. It showed me there was a way to achieve something I really, really wanted,” saeid So Delgado about Barbosa, who was also born in Portugal and played for Gloria Bistrița.

“I really remember that moment as I was watching the game with my father and we used to have conversations…”