The pavilion Carolina Marin he will wear his best clothes again these days for the celebration of a senior world championship
(Photo: Huelva2021)
Huelva is, today, a badminton world reference; It was the first Spanish venue in which a European championship absolute and, last May, it also hosted a tournament of the World Tour how is he Spain Master Super 300. The pavilion Carolina Marin he will wear his best clothes again these days for the celebration of a senior world championship, first, and an absolute one, two weeks later; With them, the project of a city that has traveled its own path is put and followed, until it is situated in the place that it occupies today in the firmament of badminton. And there is still a long way to go, because Carolina Marin she’s the best ambassador he’s ever had Huelva, and because the people of Huelva have responded with affection, to the call of the discipline for which today Huelva in the entire world. Gabriel Cruz He is the mayor of the city and, hand in hand with all the administrations, he is one of the architects of turning what a few years ago was a dream into a reality. He already lived as the maximum representative of the capital on European championship 2018, and he has seen fit to give us his point of view on what the celebration of these two badminton World Cups means for Huelva, at this point today.
How is the Huelva World Cup going to be special? Why will it be remembered?
There are several nuances that make the Huelva World Cup special, one of them is undoubtedly the connection with Carolina Marín, because it is played in her hometown, in the Sports Palace that bears the name of the Olympic and world champion and of who is the main reference of this sport for his human and sporting quality. But, we cannot forget that our city is the cradle of badminton, that this sport is a sign of identity and pride for Huelva, with a strong roots through the IES La Orden club, a quarry of world and European champions. And to all this we must add that for the first time in Huelva two world competitions, the Senior and the Absolute, will be held successively, and that the entire city, as we have always shown, is dedicated to the World Cups, with which we are going to live a real badminton party. A series of circumstances converge that make our city a perfect setting for Huelva to be remembered as the seat of the best Badminton World Cups.
How do you think the city will respond to the most important sporting event in the history of Huelva?
I have no doubt that once again showing our qualities as great hosts, giving that warmth and waste of hospitality that characterizes Huelva. There is enormous excitement about the most important sporting event that our city has ever hosted. An initiative that from minute one has attracted a great consensus and unanimous support from the entire Huelva society. I am sure that the best memory that the participating athletes are going to take with them, as happened in the European Championship, is that support and that affection from the Huelva public.
Beyond figures and numbers, why do you think the World Cup is important for Huelva? How do you think it will benefit the city, besides economically?
For us it is an unprecedented projection opportunity. The World Cups open a window for us to show ourselves to the world, to go hand in hand with badminton to countries where it would be very difficult for the name and image of Huelva to arrive in another way. And the world championships give us above all the unique possibility of positioning ourselves as the capital of sport. From the Huelva City Council, we are committed to what is already an unstoppable path: consolidating Huelva as the host of great sporting events at a national and international level. And we are doing it by attracting large events that are a source of wealth, tourism revitalization and foreign promotion of a land that is an unbeatable setting to host these types of events, due to our organizational capacity, our sports infrastructures and the experience that we have been acquiring in the latter. years.
The climate, the culture, the gastronomy, the beaches, Punta Umbría,… could badminton become the best showcase for the city?
The most important event in the history of Huelva gives us the opportunity to show a city that falls in love with its many singularities, thanks to a combination of elements that make it unique and special. Without a doubt, we are sure that the World Cups are going to be a turning point for the foreign promotion of Huelva. A promotional scope that puts the Huelva capital on the map with capital letters, associated with one of its hallmarks, such as sport, but also showing other attractions offered by this city open to the sea, full of history, with an enviable climate and excellent gastronomy.
What assessment did you make of the Spain Masters Super 300 held in May, and what can be considered the prelude, at an organizational level, to the senior and absolute world championships?
Despite the circumstances with which we experienced the Huelva Spain Masters of the World Tour of Badminton due to the restrictions derived from the pandemic, our assessment was very positive, since this competition served as a warm-up, to check the infrastructures and the organization of the World Cups, and it also allowed us to spread the name of our city on 30 television channels in 34 countries with a media value that exceeded 40 million euros.
Spain has always been a magnificent organizer of badminton tournaments and, among them, two world championships in 2001 and 2006; How did Huelva face the challenge of living up to previous events from the beginning?
On April 29, 2018, the day the European Absolute Badminton Championships concluded and Carolina Marín won the fourth continental title, that same day we got to work with the regional and national badminton federations with the rest of the teams. administrations to be the headquarters of the 2021 Absolute World Badminton World Championship. The success at all levels of this European, and the support and response of the entire Huelva society, made it possible that, just one year later, in April 2019, Huelva was officially designated as the headquarters. And we received that news with great pride and also with enormous responsibility precisely to meet the expectations that the Spanish Badminton Federation had placed on us and taking into account the success of the previous World Cups in our country. From then until now we have worked intensively complying with all the phases of the schedule, at the level of infrastructures, organization and promotion.
In the summer of 2019, we went to Basel 2019 to see first-hand what an event of this magnitude entailed. It was very important to take advantage of the Badminton World Cup that preceded us to take the pulse of a complex organization with a very high level of demand. And after this experience, we started up all the machinery to adapt our pavilion, the Palacio de los Deportes ‘Carolina Marín’ to this great event.
What challenges did the Carolina Marín pavilion pose to adapt to the demands of the World Federation, and thus become what it is today?
We have practically remade the Pavilion according to the demands of the organization. The Huelva City Council has made important reforms to cover each and every one of the needs of the great World Cup event with an investment of more than 2 million in roofing works, carpentry, pavement, improvement of the urbanization of the entire exterior, habilitation of car parks, new glassware, adaptation of changing rooms and toilets and lighting of the competition area… We can say that we are re-opening the ‘Carolina Marín’ Sports Palace for these World Cups in Huelva.
Will there be more top-level badminton in Huelva after the World Cup?
There will be, because the Huelva-badminton link is indestructible. In recent years we have managed to make the city a benchmark in holding badminton competitions of different levels and fields; we have been climbing steps in this regard. Our city was an excellent host for the 2018 European Badminton Championships and now we are preparing to host the 2021 World Cup, the most important event at the same level as the World Cups. At this point we cannot renounce that our city continues to host these events.
Surely, you have seen that more and more boys and girls are carrying a badminton racket on their backs, on their way to their sports center; What do you think and what does it feel like to see them?
I am proud and I feel enormous satisfaction because one of the objectives that we set for ourselves with the European and the World Cup is precisely to promote the love for badminton and to consolidate this sport from the grassroots in our city.
Huelva, which has historically been a benchmark for many sports in our country, such as football or tennis, of which we are deans by British heritage; it also has a deep relationship with badminton. The IES La Orden club has been a quarry for many champions of this modality at world and European level, such as Carolina Marín, and has undoubtedly contributed to the expansion of this sport at the national level. Badminton, fortunately, is growing in popularity in our city every day.
Huelva is today a world reference in badminton, but what do you see if you look back? How was the road to get to the point where we are?
A path of many illusions, also of great effort to achieve the goals, first of the European and then the World Cup, and a path in which the entire city has turned and in which we have found the support and trust of the Spanish Federation. Badminton at all times.
What can you tell us about this “other World Cup” that is going to take place outside the pavilion? What acts will people be able to enjoy during World Cup days?
The competition will be inside the Sports Palace, but outside in the city we are going to experience a badminton party these days. To do this, we have set up an area adjacent to the pavilion, the Village Plaza, which will have a stage for performances, a commercial and restaurant area open to athletes and also to the entire city. We have also made a shuttle available to the participants to facilitate access to the heart of the city, especially beautiful these days due to the Christmas lights, also offering discounts in hotels and shops, because we want those who visit us for the World Cup to let themselves go and feel an integral part of the city and, above all, enjoy it.
If, somewhere in the world, someone were reading to you who doubted whether to visit us during the World Cup or not, what would you say? How would you try to encourage him to come?
We are hoping that all the visitors that this great event is going to mobilize know our light, gastronomy, history, heritage, our beach, our climate and, above all, our good people. Huelva is a perfect destination for lovers of nature, memories of the past, historical traces, shopping and the most exquisite delicacies and cuisine. Huelva is also a cultural capital of reference, a happy and festive city all year round, a city that opens its arms to everyone who visits it.
Source: Huelva2021.com
