“Olympic Games? We are never going to give up anything, our capacity has no ceiling,” says the General Secretary for Sports of the Junta
He hopes that Seville and Malaga will host the “best football World Cup in history” in 2030.
MADRID, 4 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Secretary General for Sports of the Junta de Andalucía, José María Arrabal, stated that Andalusia “is living in the Golden Age” of its sport, after the recent organization of the Solheim Cup, the Davis Cup Finals and, among others , the Billie Jean King Cup (BJKC) in 2023, and that it trusts that Seville and Malaga will host the 2030 World Cup.
“Andalusia has reached a large number of international events. This year we are close to 300 and by 2024 we have more than 250 closed. We trust that the progression will continue because each one of them is a source of values, prosperity and projection for our land,” he said in an interview with Europa Press.
José María Arrabal celebrated that some of these international competitions are already consolidated in the calendar, such as the MotoGP Motorcycle World Championship, the Finals of the Davis Cup and the BJKC in tennis, the SailGP in sailing and the European golf circuit tests. .
“Andalusia is experiencing the Golden Age of its sport, in service of Spanish sport and we hope that it will continue in 2024. In Andalusia the rate of sports practice has gone from 42 to 56 percent, and from 300,000 to 600,000 licenses in recent years. There are few activities that can be a source of as many benefits as sport,” he highlighted.
Furthermore, on November 22 and 23, a tribute was held to the Spanish internationals who beat Malta (12-1) in the qualifying match for the 1984 Euro Cup, and to the TVE journalist José Ángel de la Casa , which narrated that meeting that marks 40 years on December 21.
Likewise, with the sponsorship of the Junta de Andalucía, Renfe and Unicaja Banco, the company G2O Publisport organized a series of round tables at the La Cartuja stadium in which nearly 30 sports information professionals debated investigative journalism, the presence of women in sports journalism and, among other aspects, entertainment content on the radio.
“The result has been exceptional. On this day two inseparable elements have come together: the sporting exploits and the 'evangelization' work carried out by sports journalists. On the one hand, the 40th anniversary of that legendary 12-1 feat of Spanish sport to Malta and the tribute to José Ángel de la Casa, who is part of the collective memory and who is almost like another member of our family,” he indicated.
In this sense, Arrabal explained that the promoter of the event, the company G2O Publisport, “has done a great job” and declared itself “open” to being able to sign agreements with the Sevillian universities with which they feel “especially comfortable” for the next edition of the event in 2024.
“We are comfortable working in the medium term, as a way of leaving a legacy, which is the ultimate goal. International journalists in 2024? Of course. One of the characteristics of our activities is internationalization, and we would love for these professionals to join us. echo the great moment of Spanish sport in all its facets,” he commented.
LA CARTUJA AND THE “CAPITAL” OF SPANISH SPORTS
For Arrabal, both the internationals who starred in the 12-1 against Malta – some like Gordillo, Poli Rincón, Señor, Zubizarreta, Buyo, Carrasco and, among others, Andoni Goicoechea who was photographed on November 22 at the Villamarín – and José Ángel of the House are worthy of the Royal Order of Sports Merit (ROMD) awarded by the Higher Sports Council (CSD).
“The proof is that 40 years later we are still talking about it. It would be beautiful if this delivery (of the ROMD) were joint due to the 'evangelization' work that the journalist does. It would be worthy of justice,” stressed the head of Andalusian Sports.
On the other hand, for the General Secretary for Sports of the Junta, the La Cartuja Stadium “is the anchor” of everything that Andalusia wants to tell the world. “It is a facility that was built with a great effort from all Spaniards and that, for 20 years, hosted events only every two years. Since its reopening in 2019 we have held more than 40. It wants to be that house where they sit in all those who love each discipline of Spanish sport are home,” he compared.
He acknowledged that he likes to feel that Seville, Malaga and Andalusia are seen as the 'capital' of Spanish sport. “Because we have all the passion to serve Spanish sport through sport. We want every athlete in Andalusia to feel at home and we love to be considered the capital of Spanish Sport,” he stressed.
SEVILLE AND MÁLAGA, “WITH DUTIES DONE” BY 2030
In his opinion, Andalusia, which is bidding for two of the 10 Spanish venues with Seville and Malaga, “meets all the necessary conditions” to contribute to the celebration of the “best football World Cup in history” in 2030.
“We compete with absolute humility, but with our homework done with respect to the other contenders. Seville and Malaga meet all the conditions in terms of infrastructure, communication, stadiums, sports culture and tradition. In a territory larger than 13 countries in the European Union at “At least two venues would be a reasonable thing,” he said.
Faced with the prospect of the Paris 2024 Games, Arrabal said that Andalusia has the “spirit of growth” and was ambitious about breaking the historical record of participants in Tokyo 2020, where 39 athletes from the region competed.
“We trust that this trend will continue. High-performance sport has experienced a growth of 75 percent and we hope that it will be endorsed at the Paris Olympics. But the path does not end there, rather it begins,” he said.
Regarding the possibility of hosting the Games in 2036, Arrabal considered that Andalusia “should never give up anything.” “We have the capacity to host any sporting event. An Olympics is everyone's dream, but it is something complex. We have achieved some of those great dreams such as European and World Cups in different disciplines and we aspire to the World Cup in football. Andalusia will never give up anything because his capacity has no ceiling, always at the side of his country,” he noted.