Thirteen Paralympic athletes will continue their university studies thanks to the Fundación Iberdrola España Scholarships

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Thirteen Paralympic athletes will continue their university studies thanks to the Fundación Iberdrola España Scholarships

  • The aid of up to 5,000 euros promotes the professional training and training of athletes to promote their labor integration
  • The scholarships are aimed at athletes who are beneficiaries of the ADOP Plan and are pursuing university or postgraduate studies.

This morning the ‘Fundación Iberdrola España Scholarships’ were awarded in Madrid, which will allow thirteen Paralympic athletes to continue with their university or postgraduate studies.

The scholarship recipients for the 2023/2024 academic year have been Sarai Gascón, Óscar Salguero, José Antonio Marí, Luis Huerta, David Levecq, Ariel Schrenck and Sergio Martos (all of them swimmers); Alba García and Diego Folgado (athletics), María Manzanero (judo), Martín de la Puente (wheelchair tennis), Ander Cepas (table tennis) and Pablo Lavandeira (wheelchair basketball).

The award ceremony was held in the Samaranch Hall of the Higher Sports Council (CSD) with the attendance of some of the scholarship athletes, the president and director of Fundación Iberdrola España, Fernando García and Ramón Castresana, respectively, and the president and director of the Spanish Paralympic Committee, Miguel Carballeda, and Alberto Jofre.

During his speech, Fernando García pointed out that “from Iberdrola and the Foundation, sport is something that we carry in our DNA.” “We feel that sport is something really important and we feel that the alliance between the two entities is vital to be able to carry out these scholarships. Thank you all for your work and effort, I am sure that you will return from Paris full of medals,” he declared.

For his part, Miguel Carballeda asked the athletes, “When there are 224 days left until the Paris Paralympic Games,” to make “a double effort: train hard to obtain the reward you deserve and train to be able to channel a professional future, best possible”. In addition, he thanked Fundación Iberdrola España for “accompanying us on this path because training is the most important thing to change the future of a country.”

Levecq spoke on behalf of the scholarship athletes, conveying his gratitude to Fundación Iberdrola España “for granting these scholarships” and to the Spanish Paralympic Committee “for creating the necessary synergies to make them possible.” The Valencian swimmer also acknowledged that “I have always been clear that I had to train, especially now that I am in the final stretch of my career.”

Scholarship athletes

The ‘Fundación Iberdrola España Scholarships’ are aimed at athletes who are beneficiaries of the ADOP Plan and are pursuing university or postgraduate studies, to facilitate their professional training to integrate into the workforce once their sporting life has ended. The amount ranges between 5,000 and 1,250 euros, depending on the total number of credits enrolled in the academic year.

As agreed by the monitoring committee of the collaboration agreement between Fundación Iberdrola España and the Spanish Paralympic Committee, in this course four athletes will receive the full scholarship, while another nine will share the amount. Thus, the beneficiaries of the ‘Iberdrola Spain Foundation Scholarships’ 2023-2024 for the amount of 5,000 euros are:

  • Sarai Gascon. Catalan swimmer with a physical disability, winner of three medals at the 2023 Manchester World Cup. She renews her scholarship to continue her Primary Education Degree at the Catholic University of Murcia.
  • José Antonio Marí . Valencian swimmer with a physical disability, world champion in Manchester 2023. He expands the amount of his scholarship to complete his Psychology studies at the Catholic University of Murcia.
  • Oscar Salguero . Barcelona swimmer with a physical disability and world runner-up in the 100-meter breaststroke at the 2022 World Cup. He renews his scholarship to finish his Medical studies at the University Autonomous Community of Barcelona.
  • Alba García . Athlete from Madrid with visual impairment, fourth in the 100 meters during the Paris 2023 World Cup. She is again awarded a scholarship to study the last year of the Physiotherapy Degree at the University of Alcalá de Henares.

In addition, it has been resolved to grant minor scholarships to the following athletes:

  • Martin de la Puente . Wheelchair tennis player from Vigo, fourth in the world ranking, and a great national dominator of the specialty. You are awarded a scholarship of 2,500 euros to complete your Final Degree Project in Business Administration and Management at the Open University of Catalonia.
  • Ander Cepas: Basque table tennis player with a physical disability, fifth in the 2022 World Cup. He receives a scholarship of 2,500 euros to continue his studies in the Degree in Business Management and Administration at the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid.
  • David Levecq: Valencian swimmer with a physical disability, sixth in the 2023 Manchester World Cup. He will receive 2,500 euros to complete his Psychology Degree studies at the Catholic University of Murcia.
  • María Manzanero: judoka from Madrid with visual disabilities, seventh in the Baku 2022 World Cup. She is awarded a scholarship of 2,500 euros to pursue a Degree in Social Work at the Complutense University of Madrid.
  • Diego Folgado: support athlete of the athlete Alba García. You will receive a scholarship of 1,250 euros to continue your studies in the Degree in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences at the Autonomous University of Madrid.
  • Luis Huerta: swimmer from Valladolid with a physical disability, bronze medalist at the Manchester 2023 World Cup. He receives a scholarship of 1,250 euros to continue the Degree in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences at the Miguel de Cervantes European University.
  • Pablo Lavandeira: wheelchair basketball player from Valladolid in the CD Ilunion of Madrid and in the Spanish team, with which he won silver in the European Championship in Rotterdam last summer and the qualifying place for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. He will receive 1,250 euros to continue the Degree in Computer Engineering at the Complutense University of Madrid.
  • Ariel Schrenck: Catalan swimmer with a physical disability, fourth in the 2023 World Cup. He receives, on an exceptional basis, a scholarship of 625 euros to begin the Degree in Data Science and Engineering at the Universitat Polytechnic of Catalonia.
  • Sergio Martos: Valencian swimmer with a physical disability, seventh in Manchester 2023. He will receive, on an exceptional basis, a scholarship of 625 euros to continue his studies in Electrical Engineering at the University Polytechnic of Valencia.

Fundación Iberdrola España, with Paralympic sport

The granting of these scholarships by Fundación Iberdrola España adds to the company’s support for Paralympic sport, as a sponsor of the Spanish Paralympic Team through the ADOP Plan since its creation in 2005. With these grants, Iberdrola contributes to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), integrated into its business strategy, specifically in the fulfillment of objectives 10 (reduction of inequalities) and 4 (quality education).

Furthermore, Iberdrola is committed to the energy, cultural, educational, and social development of the communities in which it is present. In this sense, Fundación Iberdrola España represents another step in this commitment, by promoting initiatives that contribute to improving people’s quality of life. Likewise, it is part of Iberdrola’s commitment to excellence in training.