The Marcelo Grande Theater in Tomelloso has hosted this Sunday the Gala of the Federation of Judo and Associated Sports of Castilla-La Mancha. The figure of the always remembered, Eugenio Benito, has presided over a gala in which the sporting and human virtues of one of the greats of Tomelloso sport have been extolled. The event was attended by the mayor, Inmaculada Jiménez; the Councilor for Sports, Amadeo Teviño; councilors from the Government Team and the Popular Party, the person in charge of the Board’s Sports service, Luis García Morato, the mayor of Villarrubia de los Ojos, leaders of the Federation, athletes, clubs and collaborating entities.
Adrián Osuna has presented an act in which there have been more than one hundred and sixty awards to athletes of all categories. Inmaculada Jiménez has welcomed and praised the figure of Eugenio Benito “a tireless fighter who was trained to later train the many children who passed through his hands. He transmitted to them the values of judo, a sport that brings together a large family of athletes”.
The manager of the Federation, Juan Antonio Delgado, has excused the absence of the president, José Merino, for family reasons. As he explained, “judo has been one of the sports hardest hit by Covid, but everything has been overcome and things are back to normal again.”
Thus, the awards ceremony has begun, which has been done smoothly. The Suzuki, Fujiyama, Aylu I, Jushirokan, Campo de Criptana, La Roda and Manzanares clubs have won numerous awards. Judokas and practitioners of other martial arts from Tomelloso have played a major role. Thus, in the category of less than nine years, Adrián Morón, Claudia Jiménez and Carla Parra have been awarded.
In the sub-15 category, Iker Carmona, Gonzalo Caro and Marcos Lara have been recognized, while in the junior category Arantxa González and Samuel Pradillos Ruiz have been awarded. In the wushu modality, Julia López, David Rogoveanu, Julián Sánchez Giner and David Falaba have been recognized.
emotive videos
The presentation of the awards was interspersed with videos that have been unraveling the intense work of Eugenio Benito with judo: from the complicated beginnings to the present, through the numerous changes of premises that he had to face, the numerous competitions organized and the evolution of a sport that became one of the fashionable sports in Tomelloso. The endearing photographs that were appearing have caused a lump in the throat of many of the attendees.
The Gala recognized the Desoft company that has modernized the management of the Federation. The award has been collected by Emilio Cano. It has also received an award, La Voz de Tomelloso, which has been collected by its two journalists, Francisco Navarro and Carlos Moreno, and by several families in the city for their involvement in judo and other sports: Navarro Villegas, Serrano Sánchez, Torres Hervás, Rogoveanu and Moreno Lopez.
Others of those recognized have been Claudiu Mihahila, Alejandro Peco, Alfonso López Oliva, Miguel Ángel García Andújar, Francisco Benito Rebato, José Luis Ortiz, José Antonio Rodrigo and Yamila Gómez. There have also been awards for the institutions: the City Council of Villarrubia de los Ojos, the Provincial Council of Ciudad Real, the Municipal Sports Area of Tomelloso and the City Council.
The most emotional moment of the Gala occurred when Eugenio’s family took the stage, accompanied by authorities and judo teachers. His widow has emotionally thanked the great support and affection that the attendees have given Eugenio. But there was still an important announcement for the end: the granting of the Silver Medal for Sports Merit by the Royal Spanish Judo Federation to Eugenio Benito. The gala has concluded with a group of musicians interpreting songs from the soundtrack of La Misión, among the musicians, there was a son of Eugenio.
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