Pablo Herrera He welcomed 2020 with the same wish that he will say “hello” to 2021: “Dreaming of participating in my fifth Olympic Games”. For being in Tokyo they will toast the swimmer Lidon Muñoz, the judoka Julia Figueroa, the cyclist Maurice Eckhard, The athlete Eusebio Cáceres or the gymnast Polina berezina. The pandemic altered the order of life for many athletes and that is why this New Year’s Eve is for the Spanish Olympic and Paralympic athletes a already seen of purposes.
“We have had to live all this and we have had to adapt; I just needed the confirmation of the Olympic minimum and due to the pandemic we have to get it again “. Lidón Muñoz, one of the 142 athletes awarded scholarships by the FER Project of the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation, began 2020 pending the endorsement of the minimum that he achieved weeks before in Amsterdam. But the pandemic appeared in our lives and in various disciplines the requirements to be in the Olympics were modified; without forgetting the infinity of canceled tests and the setbacks that the confinement in the preparation supposed.
The FER Project, one of the pillars of Juan Roig’s sports patronage, has contributed in this uncertain 2020 so that scholarship athletes could focus their thoughts and efforts on their sports activity. Thus, in April, in full confinement, The Trinidad Alfonso Foundation announced that the 142 scholarships approved for fiscal year 2020 (plus the 21 for coaches) were automatically renewed for 2021. That same day, Juan Roig increased its donation by 800,000 euros (up to a total of € 1.75M per year) for the purchase of sports equipment (key so that they could continue training at home) and / or for trips to competitions or concentrations whose cost would have to be assumed by the athletes. In addition, initiatives such as Sports Community, that promotes the celebration of national and international events in Alicante, Valencia and Castellón, or #EActíVateSport, aid to clubs, families and young people of the Valencian Community, contribute to the Valencian sport to be able to rebound with force and be “a social solution” to the pandemic.
The Trinidad Alfonso Foundation allocates 1.75 million to the FER Project
FER Project athletes with a guaranteed ticket to Tokyo
Thirteen athletes of the FER Project already have their ticket stamped for Tokyo (Néstor Abad, Liliana Fernández, Raúl Martínez, Sebastián Mora, Pablo Torrijos, José Quiles, Lola Riera, Iván José Cano, Héctor Catalá, Sergio Alamar, Iván López, Héctor Cabrera and Kim López ); two have them virtually (Ricardo Ten and Jose Antonio Marí) and others 23 aspire to achieve this in the coming months.
It is the case of Maurice Eckhard (“I have a 50% chance; everything goes through the World Cup in May. I’m going to fight hard”) or Julia Figueroa (“Right now I’m ahead in the rankings and it’s up to me to go to Tokyo”). It is often said that out of misfortunes opportunities arise and they attest Polina berezina (“Having one more year has allowed us to increase the difficulty of the exercises and we are going to fight until the end to be in Tokyo”) o Eusebio Cáceres (“This time has helped me to look for the jumps that I have always known I could do”).
FER Olympics with ticket to Tokyo: Néstor Abad (Gymnastics), Liliana Fernández (Beach Volleyball), Raúl Martínez (Taewkondo), Sebastián Mora (Cycling), Pablo Torrijos (Athletics), José Quiles (Boxing) and Lola Riera (Hockey)
FER Olympic Athletes with Ticket Options: Eusebio Cáceres (Athletics), Julia Figueroa (Judo), Pablo Herrera (Beach Volleyball), Lidón Muñoz (Swimming), Iván Pastor (Sailing), Ana Pérez (Judo), Jorge Ureña (Athletics), Fátima Diame (Athletics), Enrique Llopis (Athletics), Polina Berezina (Rhythmic Gymnastics), Ana Gayán (Rhythmic Gymnastics), Patricia Pérez (Rhythmic Gymnastics), Silvia Navarro (Handball), Lara González (Handball), Vega Gimeno (3×3 Basketball)
FER Paralympic Athletes with Tokyo Ticket: Iván José Cano (Athletics), Héctor Catalá (Triathlon), Sergio Alamar (Soccer 5 for the blind), Iván López (Soccer 5 for the blind), Héctor Cabrera (Athletics), Kim López (Athletics)
FER Paralympic Athletes with Ticket Options: Eva Coronado (Swimming), Sergio Martos (Swimming), Enrique José Alhambra (Swimming), Maurice Eckhard (Cycling), Ariadna Edo (Swimming), David Levecq (Swimming), José Antonio Marí (Swimming), Ricardo Ten (Cycling), Vicente Aguilar (Soccer 5) and Pablo Cantero (Soccer 5)
