Ninety blind schoolchildren gather around inclusive sport

MADRID, 19 (SERVIMEDIA)

Ninety blind or severely visually impaired schoolchildren, from different parts of Spain, met this Saturday with the aim of sharing sporting experiences and promoting their social integration through sport, demonstrating that this practice can and should be for everyone, too in the schools.

It was during the VI Meeting of Sports Schools of the ONCE that was held virtually given the health circumstances produced by the pandemic. The event was opened by the deputy general director of Social Services for Members of the ONCE, Andrés Ramos, who encouraged schoolchildren to continue practicing sports “because it provides autonomy to people with visual disabilities and allows people to meet many people.”

Ramos has had words of thanks for the physical education professionals, as well as for all the teachers, volunteers and families “who accompany boys and girls to practice sports throughout the year.”

During the Meeting, different videos of the sporting challenges that schoolchildren have faced in recent months have been projected, in which they have seen how they played sports such as judo, goalball, judo or chess.

The ONCE Director of Education, Employment and Braille, Ana Ruiz; the president of the Spanish Federation of Sports for the Blind, Ángel Luis Gómez, and the directors of the ONCE Educational Resource Centers throughout Spain. All have agreed to point out that, despite the circumstances of Covid-19, sport has continued to be at the forefront of inclusion in society for people who are blind or severely visually impaired.

In addition, different messages have been screened from prominent Paralympic athletes with visual disabilities in active service, such as judokas Borja Pahissa, Sergio Ibáñez and David García Orozco; swimmer Ariadna Edo; the athletes, Martín Parejo, Xavi Porras and Iván Cano; the triathlete, Susana Rodríguez and the former winner of eight Paralympic medals Ana García-Arcicollar.

In these videos there have also been messages from the Real Betis Balompié striker; Borja Iglesias; from the sports director of Sevilla FC, Monchi, and the water polo player, Olympic medalist in London 2012 and best water polo player in the world in 2013, Jennifer Pareja, who has pointed out that sport “gives us everything we need to overcome difficulties with energy, strength and values ​​being a great way of inclusion in society ”.

The event was closed by the vice president of the ONCE General Council, Imelda Fernández, who highlighted some important values ​​of sports such as “empathy, camaraderie, effort, respect, learning from defeat, and hard work. as a team that contributes so much to all of us ”.