Israeli model Coral Simanovich, wife of Spanish footballer Sergi Roberto, recently told Ynet about the challenging period of her third pregnancy abroad amid the ongoing situation in Israel, why she hadn't spoken publicly about the war until now, the antisemitism she and her family face in Spain, and the bodyguards who protected them following October 7.
Coral, how are you feeling?
"Big! But now I'm feeling great. It was tough."
Are there differences between this pregnancy and the previous two?
"I'm just finishing the fifth month, starting on the sixth, and you don't track every detail with the third pregnancy. Honestly, I'm never ready for it; it's always surprising and stressful for me, and it's very hard at first. I have difficult pregnancies."
How is life in Spain during this period?
"It's a complex period. You're the first to interview me since it started. Many reporters wanted to talk to me, and I preferred not to accept it for security and personal reasons. I thought it wasn't my place to speak during this time, but today I can say it was a very tough period. We had bodyguards accompanying us for three months."
Did you ask for them?
"The Israeli embassy in Spain requested, or actually required, us to have them."
Did you receive threats?
"We went to the police because of threats I received. Soccer has a large fanbase who don't like us [Israelis], and I'm very much part of that world, so imagine how exposed I am to these people. I can receive threats on every post I put on Instagram. I'm also a mother, and I didn't send my children to school at first. It's stressful. That's one of the reasons I asked Sergi not to post anything, and people didn't take it well in Israel."
What did they say?
"Things like, 'He has an Israeli wife, why isn't he supporting us?' Why? Because I live in an antisemitic country and I have two small children, I told him not to dare post anything. It's dangerous, and we needed to keep a low profile. People who don't live abroad don't realize this. I feel much safer in Israel than abroad."
How did Sergi take all of this?
"He tried to calm me down at first, saying, 'Don't worry, it isn’t such a big deal,' but he started to understand the magnitude of it. He saw what people were saying about us, speaking in a frightening manner, sending recordings."
Was he worried about his career?
"I don't think so. We mainly wanted to get off the radar when it came to this situation; we weren't thinking about careers. I don't think anyone was thinking about their career at the time."