Nora Astrain is in her 2nd year of the Double Degree Degree in Pharmacy and Human Nutrition and Dietetics. She combines her passion for knowledge with a sport she has practiced since she was a child: basketball. The combination of both passions has led her to enter the Sports Talent Programan initiative of the Sports Service of the University of Navarra to support student athletes in improving their professional, academic, sports and training staff .

- When did your relationship with basketball begin?
I started playing basketball when I was nine years old in Cantolagua, the club of my town, Sangüesa (Navarra). I played there until I was a freshman. Last year I went to play for Ardoi, in the first national division of the Basketball Federation of the Basque Country, where there are teams from the three Basque provinces, Logroño and Navarra. 

- How do you combine degree program, sport and social life?
It is difficult to combine sports with social life and degree program. Before I started university, I dedicated a lot of time to basketball, and the little time I had left was for studying. When I started degree program, I decided that I wanted to continue playing basketball but dedicate a reasonable amount of time to it, so that I could study and go out with my friends. For me, organization is very important. In the end, if you know how to organize yourself, you get everything done, but with a lot of effort. Sometimes you have to sacrifice certain things, but it pays off if that's what you want.

- What does the sport bring to you?
Basketball is very important to me. I've been playing practically all my life and I love it. When you have a bad day and you're tired, training makes you forget everything. You disconnect and enjoy that moment. Also, basketball has given me the friendship of my teammates. They are my friends. We help and support each other. It has also helped me to meet a lot of people. Together we have lived unique experiences.

- And what do Pharmacy and Nutrition add up to?
Perhaps the Degree of Nutrition is the most related to sports. It is something fundamental for the athlete, since you spend a lot of time training and you need a good per diem expenses to recover. It can also help you if you need to lose weight to run faster, move with more agility... On the other hand, many of the injuries of athletes are related to their diet, so you have to know how to control it. Pharmacy may be a more distant field, but in both cases we study our organism, its functioning, and everything is related to sports. 

- How do you plan your professional future?
At the moment I do not plan to focus my programs of study towards area sports. I think I would like to work in a laboratory or in a hospital. And in the sporting aspect I have no goal beyond continue to enjoy when I practice it, which does not detract to recognize that I would like to win the league and play the phase of promotion to LF2. 

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In addition to Nora, two other students from School are part of this program: Nina Irigoyen Rekalde (1st year Pharmacy), who practices whitewater canoeing; and Solana María Olmedo (student of postgraduate program), a field field hockey player.