Regional school athletes, women and men under 14, who participated in the National Final of the School Sports Games, received recognition from the sports authorities, in a public ceremony held in the capital in Ovalle Illapel and Coquimbo.
The Ministry of Sports and the National Institute of Sports, awarded the young athletes, from all the teams of different disciplines, who managed to qualify and participate in the recently completed National Final, in different regions of the south of the country, to each one a representative shirt of the event was delivered to them and those who achieved podium were recognized with a galvano as medalist of these games.
Special recognition was given to the athletes who were part of the Chilean delegation in the South American version of these games: Ignacio Alfaro de Coquimbo, bronze medal in Judo, Laura Aguilera de Ovalle, silver medal for her participation in the 5×80 relay and the bronze medal of swimmer Mauricio Cortés de La Serena, in the 4 x 50 freestyle relay event.
The last recognition ceremony was held in the capital of Limarí, bringing together athletes from the disciplines of chess, athletics, table tennis, futsal, handball, cycling, highlighting the participation and award of the futsal athlete Mariana Valencia, who was chosen, the Best Archer of the School Sports Games.
For the Seremi de Deportes, Fernando Medina Vergara, this is an instance with which the development of the National Games is finalized and an analysis is made.
«We believe that it is an instance of participation for all young people in our region, for all young people who believe that sport is a training tool, an important development tool in their lives. This instance of participation in the national final is undoubtedly one of the best experiences of their lives, the one that must be treasured, to value what sport is, to believe and have new sporting expectations, and also to take importance to which means the support of the family, the support of the Government and the support of all their peers in the sports career that they have ahead of them”, said the Seremi.
The municipalities were also relevant actors for the realization of the different stages, whose athletes were part of the team that represented the Coquimbo region, in the national finals.
For Nelson Olivares, Head of the Education Department of the Ovallino municipality, “it is very gratifying to receive this award for our students, which encourages them to continue practicing sports, to continue doing more sports activities, in each of the educational establishments. This award ceremony that recognizes all students in the province, encourages children to continue practicing and training. We, as supporters of the community education system, must deliver the conditions, so that they can have good places to train, this is already included in the annual education plan for the year 2023, to continue supporting athletes in different disciplines. “said the manager.
The School Sports Games had the participation of about one thousand four hundred schoolchildren, who participated in the communal, provincial, and regional stages, with the winners reaching the great National Final, which this year was held in the Atacama, Metropolitan, BioBío, and Araucanía regions. .
Jonathan Pino Naranjo, Regional Director of the National Sports Institute, in the projection for the work of the National Competence System of the IND, announced that “by the year 2023, school sports will be strongly promoted, also considering that Chile will to host the South American Final of School Sports”.
At the same time, he assured that sports activities will be carried out in advance and in good venues, since the IND has made efforts “to improve school infrastructure with programs to improve sports venues, which have benefited five communes and which It will also allow competitions to be held in decent venues and prepared for these sporting expectations and most importantly, we will be able to decentralize the sport in communes where provincial or regional finals cannot often be held”.
