MADRID, 24 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) and the San Antonio de Murcia Catholic University (UCAM) have signed this Monday the agreement for the renewal of their “eternal” alliance, “a commitment to the next generations” with the aim of “continuing to promote” athletes in the following Olympic Games.
“This agreement is eternal. We have to be committed to making the legacy of José Luis Mendoza (former president of UCAM, who died in January of this year) grow. The commitment is that this eternal union be a model for all athletes find, next to the competition, the space to compete well”, affirmed the president of the COE, Alejandro Blanco, during the event held at the organization’s headquarters in Madrid in which the list of athletes who will benefit from the agreement was presented .
The act of signing the renewal of the collaboration agreement was attended by 42 of the 450 athletes awarded scholarships by the university center, such as Carolina Marín, Mireia Belmonte or Saúl Craviotto; as well as the president of the UCAM, María Dolores García Mascarell; the sports director of the university, Pablo Rosique; in addition to part of the faculty and directors of the entity.
Blanco was very moved when he remembered the figure of Mendoza, with whom he was “totally in tune” from “day one.” “He was a world-class leader with a great purpose. He left a great legacy and has touched a large number of hearts. Trying to imitate him is a dream, but it is impossible,” he acknowledged, before highlighting an agreement that allows elite athletes “advance on the sporting level” while progressing with their training.
UCAM has five of its own teams in basketball, soccer, canoeing, table tennis and eSports, as well as more than 30 clubs sponsored or linked to the university. “In the Murcia region alone, there are more than 6,000 athletes who compete every weekend with the UCAM on their chests, it is a way of expanding the values of sport”, emphasized Rosique, who highlighted that sport and training “must go hand in hand.”
Thus, the president of the UCAM celebrated that this alliance has already borne “many fruits”, with 22 medals in the last Games in Tokyo. “The outlook after a sports career is often uncertain. This synergy has given a result that has been a geometric progression, we would never have imagined it,” admitted García Mascarell.
“It is a commitment between the COE and the UCAM, but it is with the next generations. The UCAM is as always at the services of the athletes, we would like to continue promoting to continue seeing generations of Olympians”, he assured about those who considered the ” true ‘influencers'”, thanks to their “leadership” and values of “sacrifice, perseverance and tolerance for frustration”.
ATHLETES CELEBRATE THE CONTINUATION OF THE COE-UCAM “FAMILY”
During the event, 20 of the 42 athletes present were able to recount their experience with the university, which provides “important help” to combine elite sport and training. “We are a family that is also concerned about the future,” said taekwondo athlete Adriana Cerezo.
For her part, badminton player Carolina Marín stressed that it is “a privilege” to be part of “this family.” “We are talking about the present and the future,” he reiterated, while the athlete Raquel González thanked that this COE-UCAM alliance allows her to mark herself and also achieve her “training challenges”, while continuing “at the foot of the canyon” in track.
“It was very special to be the first with a scholarship from UCAM. They gave me the opportunity to compete after London 2012, when I was left without a club, and to study a career that I liked,” said swimmer Mireia Belmonte, the first athlete to benefit of the collaboration between the COE and the UCAM.
For paddler Saúl Craviotto, “the UCAM-COE family is happiness and gratitude.” “What the university has done for us is very important, offering us a better future,” he recounted before his partner Carlos Arévalo appealed for “sacrifice and effort” to combine both activities. “That is why the facilities provided by COE and UCAM are appreciated, with this strong union,” he applauded.
Finally, expalista David Cal explained what his experience is like within the UCAM sports team, where he has been working for seven years. “When you retire there is a void, nine months later I started working at UCAM. I am very happy. I hope that athletes continue to be helped with this renewal. It is the best alliance that could be made: a university willing to help athletes athletes and the COE that helps them in their sports stage. It is one of the strongest alliances in Spain at a sports level”, he stressed.