Soneva Stars

During her 15-year career, Hortensia has collaborated with the UN, Olympics Sports Federations and several private clinics. She has a Master’s in Osteopathy and degrees in Sports Education and Physiotherapy. Originally focused on a traditional osteopathic approach to treating sports injuries, Hortensia’s methodology evolved to reflect evidence that stress, emotions and unchanneled trauma have a direct impact on the body. She works closely with you to get to the root of your concerns, using a unique, multi-pronged approach that combines traditional osteopathy with her deep knowledge of the body’s biodynamic, skeletal, muscular and craniosacral systems.  

Glass artist Trine Drivsholm returns to Soneva Art & Glass for her third residency to continue her latest endeavour in glass, the Lapsis series. Trine often uses recognisable forms as a starting point for her glass sculptures, but it is the aesthetic properties of the vessel that interest her most as opposed to its functional use. She creates balanced shapes with definitive proportions and combines colours and surfaces. From matte and silky finishes to delicate tones that emphasise soft, wavy organic lines. Trine’s Lapis series has been assembled to imitate cairns (a man-made stack of stones) with textures that have been weathered by wind, dust and time, and has been developed during her residency at the Soneva Art & Glass studio. This delicate harmony of tone and texture and its seamless connection with nature resonate with Soneva’s SLOW LIFE philosophy, which is rooted in the desire to deepen and conserve our connection with the natural world. Her previous sculptures have also been acquired by a number of prestigious international institutions, including Glasmuseum Ebeltoft, Denmark National Arts & Design Collection, the Holland Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe in Hamburg and the Racine Art Museum in Wisconsin, USA.    

France’s Jennifer Le Nechet was crowned the world’s best bartender at the World Class Bartender of the Year Global Final 2016 – becoming the first female bartender to claim the title. Following a four-day battle in Miami, she triumphed over the world’s greatest talents in cocktail making. The French bartender, who could usually be found crafting drinks and charming customers behind the bar at Café Moderne in Paris, wowed the judges by creating a spectacular range of vibrant drinks at her Steampunk-themed pop-up bar. In 2018, Jennifer opened Mino on Rue de Ménilmontant in Paris. The decor and menu took inspiration from the Mediterranean while the cocktails were sold in pitchers, perfect for drinking with groups of friends. Among her signature cocktails is the Bella Ciao, a negroni prepared sous vide with confit tomatoes and basil.

Hailed as one of the best football freestylers in the world, Marcel Gurk is the current German champion, holds ten Guinness World Records and is the author of the world’s first book on football freestyling. He made it to the semifinal of Germany’s Got Talent, Das Supertalent, and travels around the world sharing his unique skills. Having studied sport and media management in Dusseldorf, Marcel also specialises in working with children and has designed his own unique concept to help take his students’ skills to the next level. While in the Maldives, he will be hosting football freestyling workshops for Young Sonevians at Soneva Fushi and Soneva Jani.

Joe Wicks is on a mission to make the world fitter, healthier and happier. The man behind the global fitness brand The Body Coach, his YouTube channel ‘The Body Coach TV’ delivers home workouts for all ages and fitness levels. Inspired by the sense of fulfilment he got from helping his clients get fitter and healthier, Joe started using social media to share nutritious recipes and motivation, which he hoped would make a positive difference in people’s lives. His 15-second videos of meals that take 15 minutes to make quickly attracted a large following and inspired Joe’s first book – Lean in 15. Full of 15-minute recipes and workouts, the book was published in 2015 and has sold over one million copies. It was the UK’s best-selling non-fiction title that year and is the second best-selling cookbook of all time. His ‘PE With Joe’ workout series during the Covid-19 lockdown received over 80 million views and raised more than £580,000 for NHS Charities Together. In 2020, Joe broke the Guinness World Record for the highest number of viewers for a live-streamed workout on YouTube – with over 955,000 viewers taking part.  

Ricky Saward is a German chef, entrepreneur and cookbook author. He is the head chef and co-owner at Frankfurt’s Seven Swans restaurant, which was named the world’s first Michelin-starred vegan restaurant in 2020. Ricky’s recognition stems from his unique, sustainable philosophy of vegetarian cuisine with regional, seasonal sourcing of ingredients based on the concepts of “farm to table” and “root to leaf”. After joining Seven Swans in 2018, the restaurant was awarded one Michelin star for its vegetarian cuisine, making Ricky one of just five Michelin-starred vegetarian chefs in the world. In mid-2019, Ricky switched his focus to plant-based cuisine utilising only home-grown or regionally sourced ingredients. The same year, his sustainable philosophy was awarded the world’s first Michelin Guide Sustainability Award. In 2020, he was again awarded one Michelin star, in addition to a green star, and became the world’s first Michelin-starred vegan chef. Today, he remains Germany’s only Michelin-starred chef producing purely plant-based cuisine.

Fernando Poggi is a renowned figure in the world of padel tennis, with a prolific professional career spanning from 1996 to 2021. For over a decade, he consistently maintained a top-level position among the world’s top 10 pairs, partnering with Cristian Gutierrez, Sanyo, Maxi Grabiel, Reca, Marcelo Jardim, Allemandi, Alex Ruiz, Botello and more. In 2000, he secured a championship victory in the Cádiz International Tournament Opel Padel Tour Club Vista Hermosa, alongside Cristian Gutierrez, and went on to secure the finalist position in various open tournaments. In 2006, Fernando reached a career-high of 5th position in the Padel Pro Tour rankings. Since 2015, he has also been an integral member of M3 Padel Academy and coached in M3 for esteemed World Padel Tour players, including Lebron, Galan, Yanguas, Semmler, Pincho Fernandez and Diestro, among others.          

Igor Oleynik is ranked among the top 16 football freestylers in the world and is a four-time Russian national champion. He started playing football when he was six years old and switched to freestyling at 16. He went on to successfully participate in numerous international tournaments, including the prestigious Red Bull Street Style events. During his professional career, he has been a brand ambassador for Nike and Adidas and collaborated with Volkswagen and FC Lokomotiv. In 2018-2019 he played for Amkal, one of the most popular media football teams in Russia and also one of the biggest YouTube projects. In addition, he is the founder of iFreestyle, the largest freestyle and street football school in the world which united around 250 children. A talented coach, Igor never stops learning and polishing his skills. Passionate about inspiring others, he never sets limits for himself, constantly inventing new tricks.

Hailing from Eindhoven in the Netherlands, Paul Haarhuis is a former world No. 1 doubles tennis player and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 18. After graduating from Florida State University with an Economics degree, he began his professional tennis career in 1988. Paul went on to secure one ATP singles title and reach seven singles finals, including the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells. In doubles, Paul claimed six Grand Slam titles, won the World Doubles Championships twice, and, with Jacco Eltingh, became the first team to conquer all Grand Slams. He also amassed 54 ATP Tour Doubles titles. From 2014 to 2021, Paul captained the Dutch Billie Jean King Cup team, reaching the semifinals in 2016. Since 2017, he has served as the Davis Cup Captain for the Netherlands.

Dr Ryuki Hyodo is a planetary scientist at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) as an International Top Young Fellow and spends several months per year working at Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris (IPGP). He specialises in planetary formation theory and planetary exploration, actively contributing to the development of next-generation planetary missions within JAXA. Previously having participated in planetary missions of the European Space Agency (ESA), NASA, and JAXA, with the contribution of optimising mission design for the most significant scientific insights and discoveries. His research interests are focused on understanding the formation and evolution processes of various planetary systems, small celestial bodies, and rings, using computer simulations and theoretical methods. He is known for his notable work on the formation of Saturn’s rings, and his research on Phobos, one of Mars’ moons, has suggested the possibility of finding traces of past Martian life on its surface. Dr Hyodo’s research has been published in esteemed scientific journals, including Science and Nature Geoscience.

Jacob Holmström is the head chef and co-owner of two Michelin-starred Gastrologik, located in Stockholm, Sweden. His dedication to showcasing the richness of Swedish cuisine, combined with his passion for sustainability, has solidified his reputation as a leading figure in the culinary world. His work at Gastrologik continues to be celebrated by food enthusiasts and critics alike, making him a prominent chef in the contemporary gastronomic scene. Prior to opening Gastrologik, Chef Jacob honed his skills in various kitchens, including three-Michelin-starred Noma in Copenhagen. Throughout his career, he has received numerous awards and accolades including a White Guide Global Gastronomy Award which celebrates their commitment to sustainable, locally sourced ingredients and innovative cooking, along with Gourmet Restaurant of the Year in Sweden in 2020.

As part of our ongoing commitment to ensuring that our younger guests stay inspired and intrigued, Soneva aims to help visiting children and teenagers feel fully supported outside of term-time. We have partnered with Oppidan Education, a British-based mentoring firm created to help children continue their learning outside of the classroom and reach their full potential. As well as complimentary drop-in workshops with fun, educational activities, Oppidan will also offer private, one-on-one appointments, which can be scheduled each afternoon at an additional fee.