Opened in May 2016, Rafa Nadal Academy has been passing the vision of one of the greatest players of all time onto the new generation of future tennis stars, offering them the best possible facilities at his Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor.
The Academy provides the top-tier conditions for the upcoming youngster, giving them a chance to improve the various elements of their tennis alongside highly-skilled and trained coaches from Spain and other parts of the world.
Also, some established players like Casper Ruud and Jaume Munar train in Mallorca regularly, often with Nadal himself, if he is at home. The recent setbacks with the coronavirus pandemic have forced the Academy to keep both the players and staff as isolated as possible from outside factors, closing facilities and taking good care of all the people who are currently on the Academy site.
Besides tennis, Nadal’s students at the Academy have the opportunity to take care of their education as well, with Rafa Nadal International School allowing them to combine tennis and studies. Each student is prepared to face the university entrance system – including access to American institutions through scholarships, which is extremely important if they want to embrace college tennis and work more on their education.
Nadal had a message for his students who are taking classes from home, highlighting the importance of their parents and appreciating the teachers for their efforts to make the courses possible in these extreme conditions.
“During this time of confinement in which school life has changed completely, Rafa Nadal wanted to send a message of encouragement to all the students of the Rafa Nadal International School who are doing online classes from their homes during these days.
Rafa himself also wanted to highlight the important work of the parents in this process and thank the teachers for their efforts and tremendous involvement in making classes possible. Although the original concept of the school was designed with the aim that the tennis players at the Academy could combine their tennis training with academics, Rafa wanted to open the doors to all the young people of Mallorca from the very beginning, whether they were tennis players or not, so that everyone could benefit from the facilities and the academic program.”
Pau Gasol asks for solidarity after helping Rafael Nadal raise €11M for charity
About a week after he joined Rafael Nadal’s noble quest of raising 11 million euros for 1,350,000 affected Spanish people through the Red Cross Responds project, NBA veteran Pau Gasol reflected on the humans’ loving nature and their powerful sense of unity, two characteristics that should save our world from the coronavirus pandemic.
“It all happened so fast: One day, we were going to our jobs, hanging out with friends and going to restaurants. The NBA playoffs were a month away. I was busy rehabbing an injury that has kept me out of competitive basketball for a little over a year,” said Gasol in The Players’ Tribune.
“Human beings desire connection and community. The people at their windows are a daily reminder of the human spirit’s hunger for solidarity and love, even in the most challenging times. As humans, we all fundamentally want the same things: safety, affection, health, freedom and a good life for our loved ones and future generations,” said Pau.
Spain is one of the most affected countries by the coronavirus pandemic, the number of infected Spaniards passing Italy’s count on Saturday. Gasol decided to help the highly affected Spanish society a week ago when he teamed up with Rafael Nadal and the Red Cross to raise 11 million euros throughout a campaign which has the objective to save 1,350,000 people.
“With sports suspended, I think that athletes are feeling more connected than ever to our communities, our fans and the world around us (…) Last week, Rafael Nadal and I teamed up with the Red Cross to launch a campaign we’re calling #NuestraMejorVictoria (“Our Best Victory”) — to encourage athletes to support the fight against COVID-19,” said Pau Gasol.
“I hope this is just the beginning. We need athletes around the world to unite efforts, to continue to use their platforms to share critical information about the pandemic and bring people together across cultures and borders. Let’s do it!” Gasol emphasized.
