The VI #SiempreFuerte Award winners!

Earlier today at La Rosaleda, a jury made up of 11 people, headed up by Paco Ráez, Pablo's father and an honorary member, decided on the winners of these awards that are in their sixth edition in 2023.

Teléfono de la Esperanza, Asociación Española contra el Cáncer and Asociación un Niño una Sonrisa are the charity organisations that have won the 2022 Social Entity Awards. The Abdallah Ben Barek Award goes to CD Flamencos Amputados Sur. To close the five winners of the sixth edition, the #SiempreFuerte Special Award will be awarded posthumously for the first time in its history. Javier Imbroda will be recognised with this award a year after he passed away.

Check out the stories of the winners, Malaguistas! Congratulations to all!

Social Entity Awards 2022

Teléfono de la Esperanza de Málaga

Teléfono de la Esperanza de Málaga received its first call in 1976. They offer a 24-hour service by calling 952 26 15 00, 365 days a year in order to prevent suicides and promote the psychosocial well-being of Malagueños. In 2022, they attended 29,707 crisis situations, and 1,720 psychological appointments were made. Teléfono de la Esperanza de Málaga has 133 volunteers, who collaborate in various activities. Chat de la Esperanza helps young people and teenagers with a focus on suicide prevention via new technologies; a program to alleviate loneliness in the elderly; emotional health workshops; volunteer training; and helping suicide survivors.

Asociación Española contra el Cáncer

For 59 years, they have integrated patients, family members, volunteers and professionals who work to prevent, raise awareness and accompany those affected and finance research projects against cancer. They have 13 local branches, 1,514 volunteers, 12,800 members and 29 professionals. Their prevention campaigns reached 25,000 people in 2022, and their professionals attended to 8,961 people. They provide free services of social orientation, psychological attention, wellness workshops, accompaniment, physiotherapy, loan of wigs and orthopaedic material, therapies to stop smoking, food delivery and transfer of patients from Nerja and Ronda to hospitals in Málaga. In addition, they have 12 residencies available to patients who come to the capital to receive cancer treatment.

Asociación SuperHeroes un Niño una Sonrisa

This association was born just five years ago, in 2018, with the main objective of making children in hospital smile, despite their illness. This initiative is carried out by volunteers dressed as Spiderman, Catwoman, Captain Marvel, Green Arrow, Superman and Captain America. A total of 19 Superheroes whose mission, this time, is not to save the world, but to bring cheer to the little ones and make their hospital stay more enjoyable. They visit Hospital Materno Infantil in Málaga twice a month. Not just the children on the oncology ward, but all the those who are going through a difficult time. Given their great work, demand is growing in other parts of the country.

Abdallah Ben Barek Award

CD Flamencos Amputados Sur

This entity was established in 2019, being the first specific football club for amputees in Spain. They’re based in the Málaga town of Antequera and have more than 20 players from all over Andalucía. They are the current champions of the Copa de España after the title obtained in 2021. In 2022 they played, for the first time in their history, in the Champions League, being the only Spanish club to do so, and finished in fourth place. During the year they take part in their own tournaments, as well as international events. CD Flamencos Amputados Sur has won the Abdallah Ben Barek Award for helping young people who have suffered the amputation of one of their legs to continue enjoying sport and life. Their motto: 'Fly high, but always with your foot on the ground'.

#SiempreFuerte Special Award

Javier Imbroda (posthumous)

A relevant figure in Málaga basketball, at just 27 years old, and being a coach, Javier Imbroda promoted Maristas to the ACB and at 34 made Unicaja runner-up in the League in the historic final in 1995. He was the Spanish coach, reaching a bronze in the European competition in Turkey in 2001. On a political level, in 2011 he directed Málaga Deporte y Eventos, and in 2018 was appointed Minister of Education and Sports of the Junta de Andalucía. Javier knew the importance of educating in values and in 2010 created the Javier Imbroda Foundation, which currently cares for 100 children in Trinidad at risk of social exclusion. He passed away last year due to cancer. For his leadership, his tenacity and conciliatory character, and above all, for the values that he impregnated in society, Javier Imbroda will receive the #SiempreFuerte Special Award.

The jury that deliberated at La Rosaleda was made up of 11 very special judges. José María Muñoz, president of the MCF Foundation; Francisco Martín Aguilar, MCF’s Protocol and Institutional Relations adviser; Lucas Rodríguez, MCF Foundation coordinator; Sebastián Fernández 'Basti', from the MCF Foundation’s Social Department; Alberto Escassi, MCF captain; Ruth Acedo, MCFF captain; and Adrián Iglesias, Málaga Genuine captain on behalf of Málaga Club de Fútbol. In addition, Francisco Javier Pomares (Málaga City Hall Councillor for Social Rights and Equality), María Lourdes Piña (Deputy for Equality, Social Services and Families at the Diputación de Málaga) and Ruth Sarabia (Delegate for Equality, Social Policies and Conciliation at the Junta Andalucía), representing the City Hall, Diputación and Junta de Andalucía, at the voting ceremony.

Málaga Club de Fútbol extends its most sincere congratulations to the winners and is proud of all of them, both personal and charitable. Pablo, we are always Siempre Fuerte!