Marbella (Málaga), March 5 Former Spanish tennis player Manolo Santana, who died at the age of 83 on December 11, received an emotional posthumous tribute this Saturday after the Davis Cup doubles match between Spain and Romania, in which stars of the tennis from all eras came together to remember him in his adoptive Marbella. The ceremony took place on the center court of the Marbella Puente Romano club that bears his name, Manolo Santana, with the entire audience standing up to dedicate a warm memory to this Spanish tennis legend and just after Spain’s defeat in doubles against Romania, a match that quickly faded into the background. The former captain of Spain in the Davis Cup Álex Corretja introduced a speech in tribute to Manolo, followed by a few words from his daughter Bárbara Santana and Claudia Rodríguez, the tennis player’s widow, who was visibly moved. Tennis players Albert Costa, Nicolás Almagro, Anabel Medina, José López Maeso and Juan Carlos Ferrero participated in the tribute to the former tennis player from Madrid who has lived in Marbella for decades, and rackets from the Santana era such as the Czech Jan Kodes, the Italian Nicola Pietrangeli, the Romanian Ion Tiriac or the legendary Björn Borg. Through a video shown on the track screens, praise was not lacking from Rafael Nadal, who regretted not being present and considered Santana as “someone who has achieved unique things and has marked the way for all the rest”. The Swiss Roger Federer recognized him as a “master” of this sport whom he had the pleasure of meeting and admiring, while the Serbian Novak Djokovic expressed his respect for Santana: “He was an icon, a legend and an incredible champion,” he said . The president of the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation (RFET), Miguel Díaz, defined him as the “pioneer” to whom Spanish tennis owes “most of the successes”. The event was also attended by other personalities from the world of politics and sports, such as the president of the Andalusian Government, Juan Manuel Moreno, or the director of Institutional Relations and former Real Madrid player, Emilio Butragueño. EFE 1012009 afl/cc/lm (Photo)
