A look at the "would be" effects of independence
Firstly, we would like to make it very clear that no leading Catalan sports stars have said they want to compete for Catalonia.
Let us imagine for a moment that Catalonia becomes an independent state tomorrow [Monday]. It is 10th November 2014 and national coaches have to name their squads for their respective sports and competitions. Let's take a look at this step by step, or better said sport by sport.
How would it affect 'La Roja'?
In football, saying goodbye to four players who have epitomised Spanish international football would be a huge loss although it would open the door to others who are ready to take the step up. Cesc, Piqué and Busquets, amongst others, may be key players within Spain's international set-up, but 'La Roja' would still have a world-class starting XI, even without them.
There would be a much greater effect on basketball. Pau Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro would be huge losses for the 'ÑBA'. Their absences would force the likes of Rudy Fernández, Sergio Rodríguez and José Calderón to step up to the plate. The team would be less intimidating without the Catalans.
The Olympic Games
However, without a doubt, a country's sporting health is measured every four years at the Olympic Games. Spain won 17 medals at the 2012 games in London. Of those, five came courtesy of Catalan sports stars: Mireia Belmonte (2), Carbonell and Fuentes in synchronised swimming, Saul Craviotto (sprint canoe) and Joel González (Tae kwon do).
Source: Marca.com
No mention of bikers? Top current (there's a long history) Catalan MotoGP riders are Marc Márquez, his brother Àlex Márquez, Pol Espargaró and Maverick Viñales. In Enduro, there is Ivan Cervantes, and Isidre Esteve who went on to compete in the Dakar Rally.
And what to say of Laia Sanz, biking history's most outstanding woman rider as ten-times trial world champion, as well as an outstanding competitor in world-class Raid and Enduro competitions, including the Dakar.
And I could go on and on...