A TALK WITH WOMEN LEADING THE FIELD

AGNIESZKA ROJEWSKA

WORLD BARISTA CHAMPION 2018

You are winning one competition after another and thanks to your hard work you are becoming famous all over the world. Considering you have also ranked first place at recent World Coffee Events, how would you describe the year just ended?

Well...I am not winning all the competitions! I only managed to win a few. The challenges are really tough and all baristas are very talented. Over the years, not only men but also women are becoming more and more skilled and I am proud to be part of this big community of coffee lovers.

Something I appreciate a lot is that, once the competitions start, there is no distinction between men and women: we are all equal, we only stand out from the others

for our individual skills.

Men, women, newcomers and first-class baristas: there is no difference between them and this is evident each time. You can never guess the winner because they have all trained very hard, visualising their goal, then adrenaline does the rest.

For me competing does not mean aspiring to become famous but to develop my skills. How would I describe this last year? One like many: every time, when the season ends, I allow myself a few days’ break then I start thinking about my next objectives.

Once everything is defined, I start training hard for the national and international competitions and continue in this way until the date of the World Championship.

It’s a constant combination of work, travels, depression, anger, disillusionment, tiredness, excitement, happiness and adrenaline. It’s hard, but I would not change anything as I am doing what I love and my passion has become my fulltime job.

We already interviewed you during the WLAC and WCIGS at Belo Horizonte and you told us how you went through this experience with the support of Sanremo’s entire team. Looking back, what do you remember of our time together?

Sanremo’s team is fantastic in many ways, but it was at Belo Horizonte tha I felt part of the family for the first time and this was truly important for me. Being able to chat with the members of the S.W.A.T. was like a dream come true.

The psychological and professional support I received from the Sanremo World Academy Team was phenomenal. I had the opportunity of seeing the best baristas like Ben Stephens, Sasa Sestic, Giacomo and Pietro Vannelli, Patrick O’Malley as well as John Gordon help anyone experiencing difficulties, and it was an important moment to share.

What is your next objective with us?

Being new to the Sanremo family, I reckon that my first objective will be to find my place inside the team and understand how to contribute to the Sanremo community. Then, it will be a year full of brainstorming and new challenges to find out our next project as a team. I can’t wait to embark on this new experience!

What advice would you give to someone who wishes to follow your footsteps?

I guess that the best advice I could give is to be patient and quite determined to follow one’s own dreams and objectives. Decide what you want to obtain then think of how to achieve it. You must accept that the way ahead is likely to be strewn with difficulties and that there will be little time to rest, if you really want to improve himself, but you will love every step of your journey. Remember that you are living your passion.

It will not be easy but the experience is worth the effort, and just like everything, no challenge means no progress. What I can tell future women baristas is that it will be a truly electrifying experience. You will have the opportunity of competing with everyone, with no exception, and to improve your skills in a huge community of enthusiasts: enjoy the adventure. This kind of life is exciting. Good luck to you all!

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