Rafael Nadal, V Camino Real Award of the Instituto Franklin-UAH, announces his retirement after a historic career
On October 10th, 2024, Rafael Nadal Parera announced in a video his retirement from tennis after a 22-year career. Rafa Nadal is considered the best tennis player in history on clay court and one of the best of all time. In addition to the numerous titles won by the Mallorcan in the field of sports, Rafael Nadal has received several awards and distinctions. In 2022, the Instituto Franklin-UAH awarded him the Camino Real Award, presented by His Majesty the King, in recognition of his contribution to the projection and recognition of Spain in the United States, highlighting not only his work as an ambassador of Spanish sport, but also as a symbol of the values that unite Spain and the United States.
As a symbol of perseverance and positive representation of Spain and its values, the Instituto Franklin of the Universidad de Alcalá reiterates its gratitude and recognition of the tennis player's sports and social work, and wishes him all the best in his new stage.
CAMINO REAL
The Camino Real Award was established by the Instituto Franklin-UAH in 2012 to coincide with its 25th anniversary (1987) and as a vindication and current recognition of the historic Spanish presence in the United States since the arrival of Ponce de León in Florida in 1513. The name Camino Real refers to the pathways used by Spaniards to reach the territories that are now part of the United States. The Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (Royal Road of Hinterland) connected along 2,500 km the city of Mexico and Santa Fe, in New Mexico, and the Camino Real of California (originally the Anza route) connected the missions established by the Franciscan Fathers in the Lower and Upper California 1,000 km along the coast. From its beginnings in the fifteenth century until the early nineteenth century, the California road connected 21 missions and was renamed El Camino Real. In 2010, UNESCO declared it World Heritage Site.
In the late nineteenth century, when California was already a state of the Union, some of the paths of the Camino Real were marked with bells. The mast used for its placement simulated the crook used by the founding Franciscan Fathers. At present, there are 450 bells placed along the historic Camino Real in California.
The award ceremony takes place in the Auditorium of the Universidad de Alcalá and is presided over by His Majesty the King.
The bell that is given to the award-winner is a recognition and tribute to this symbol steeped in history. The sculpture of the bell is designed by the Navarran sculptor Carlos Ciriza.
The Camino Real Award has been presented in previous editions to virologist Ana Fernández-Sesma (2023), actor Antonio Banderas (2017), basketball player Pau Gasol (2015), cardiologist Valentín Fuster (2013) and tenor Plácido Domingo (2012).
