Agreement between Defense and Sport promotes high performance practices
An agreement between the Ministry of National Defense and the National Sports Secretariat will facilitate specialization in high-performance practices for 15 federated athletes who fill military vacancies. “If we want a good international representation, they need to dedicate themselves to their disciplines,” said the head of Sports, Sebastián Bauzá. The beneficiaries will offer talks to the military and military children.
The ceremony to finalize the commitment between the institutions took place at the headquarters of the Ministry of National Defense. Also present were the Minister and Undersecretary of Defense, Javier García and Rivera Elgue, respectively; the general director of Social Services, Roxana Berois; the coordinator of Federated Sports, Eduardo Ulloa, and federated athletes.
The list of 15 athletes who receive the income of a military subordinate includes, among others, the rower Bruno Cetraro, the sailor Dolores Moreira and the athlete María Pía Fernández. The beneficiaries were defined from the exchange between the secretariat and each of the federations, said Bauzá, who cited Cetraro as an example, winner of the gold medal in the qualifying competition for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games, which will be held between 20 October and November 5.
“It is a step to professionalism,” he considered. “These scholarships are essential for athletes,” added the chief, who assured that these competitors need to dedicate as much time as possible to the sport so that their international representation is the best.
“From the secretariat, we offer our infrastructure, the sports arenas, the Combat Sports Training Center for the children of soldiers to practice. At the same time, the athletes offer them talks and teach disciplines such as boxing and taekwondo,” Bauzá described.
For his part, García highlighted the possibility of accessing financial support, which allows them to train and pursue their vocations.
