Pedro Sánchez highlights the contribution of the High-Performance Centres to the successes of Spanish sport

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, speaks with members of the Spanish artistic swimming team, in the presence of the team's coach, Andrea Fuentes (Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa)

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, has visited the Sant Cugat del Vallès CAR in Barcelona, an international benchmark in the preparation of elite athletes, where he highlighted the contribution of these centres to the success of Spanish sport.

The chief executive, accompanied by the Minister for Education, Vocational Training and Sport and Government Spokesperson, Pilar Alegría, the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, and the Government Delegate, Carlos Prieto, visited the facilities and held a meeting with the sportspeople. Sánchez had the opportunity to greet the Artistic Swimming coach, Andrea Fuentes, and Iris Tió and Dennis González, both gold medallists in this discipline at the World Championships in Singapore 2025. He also greeted the members of the men's and women's water polo teams, who won gold at the Singapore 2025 World Cup and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, respectively.

Inaugurated in 1987 as part of the preparation for the 1992 Barcelona Games, the Sant Cugat CAR has 180,000 square metres with integrated services for technical training, medical-scientific support and residence, as well as educational services to guarantee both academic and sporting training.

Group photo of the members of the Spanish artistic swimming team with the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The centre is owned by the Generalitat de Catalunya, although the Government of Spain collaborates in the development of its activity through a subsidy granted annually by the Higher Council for Sports (CSD). In 2025, the Government will allocate €3.5 million for operating costs, new facilities and infrastructure improvements. The centre is also undergoing an ambitious modernisation process, to which the Government of Spain has contributed with an investment of €8 million from the European funds of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, which complements the annual aid.

The Sant Cugat del Vallès CAR stands out in aquatic sports, where Spain has had numerous successes that accredit it as a world power. In women's water polo, we won Olympic gold in Paris 2024; the men's water polo team won their fourth world gold in the 2025 World Championships, and European gold in 2024; in artistic swimming, Spain set an all-time record in the Singapore 2025 World Championships as the country with the most medals, with a total of nine, and with Spain's Iris Tió as the most awarded athlete of the championships with six medals; and we won Olympic team bronze in Paris 2024. Spain has also been a pioneer in opening up artistic swimming to men, integrating mixed routines long before this modality was recognised in the Olympic Games. In this regard, Iris Tió and Dennis González won gold in the mixed duet at the Singapore 2025 World Championships.

Non official translation