Since 2012, UCAM has been dominating the Spanish university sports. The support that the Catholic University gives athletes, so that they can combine their studies with their training and competitions has attracted a good portion of the Spanish sports talents, and this is reflected in the athletic results of the university.

This year, they’ve succeeded more than 100 medals and beaten last years award record (140) dominating the medal count: 141 medals (86 gold, 40 silver and 15 bronze). University of Valencia got to the second place with 67 medals (19 gold, 18 silver and 30 bronze), and in third place, University of Barcelona by achieving 27 medals (7 gold, 9 silver and 11 bronze). This year, the responsibility of organising the Spanish University Championship was on the universities of Valencian Community. UCAM’s domination and the highest number of medals won has, once again, been mostly thanks to swimming and track and field. In the pool, UCAM’s swimmers won 44 metals for the brilliant performances by Alberto Lozano (7 gold), Melani Costa (6 gold and 2 silver), José Antonio Marí (4 gold) and Sarai Gascón (4 gold). The results of track and field were also brilliant with 26 medals: 13 gols, 10 silver and 3 bronze. Between the highlighted athletes, María Pérez (current European champion of 20 kilometre walk), Fernando Carro (European runner up on 3.000 hurdles), or Jorge Ureña (brand-new European champion of indoor track heptathlon).

Other sports, in that UCAM athletes normally perform well, didn’t fail either: karate (10 medals, with the participation of world’s nro 1 Sandra Sánchez), badminton (6 gold, among them Olympian Pablo Abián) or tennis (5 medals, including the medal from Tita Torró). In team sports, great victories were also seen: basketball (feminine and masculine gold), volleyball (feminine gold and masculine silver), indoor football (masculine gold) and handball (feminine bronze).

244 UCAM medalists in 2019

The 144 medals achieved by UCAM, where a total of 244 athletes participates, gives an idea of the potential the University has regarding sports. In contrast with the rest of the universities, the Catholic has been at the front of Spanish university sports for eight years in a row. It’s not something that has been achieved from one day to another, but a result from years of work, from a university structure that follows those of the great universities of United States, where sports is a part of campus life. This way, what is achieved is a result from the commitment of the institution towards supporting the athletes so that they won’t renounce their studies for pursuing their athlete dreams.

Spanish Sports University Medal Count 2019