Seven named Malagueños of the Year for their talent and achievements

Seven outstanding figures from Malaga province were honoured at the sixth Malagueños del Año (Malagueños of the Year) awards, which took place on Thursday, 11 December. Co-organised by SUR and Unicaja, the dazzling gala at Palacio de Ferias y Congresos conference centre in Malaga city brought together more than a thousand people, among them representatives of regional and local institutions.

Journalists Ana Barreales and Alberto Gómez hosted the ceremony, while their colleagues were responsible for presenting the awards in the categories of research, business, society, sports and career that recognise talent and achieved dreams.

With the business award in hand, founder and CEO of climate-control company Airzone Antonio Mediato confirmed his commitment to becoming more "European". "We want to do it here in Malaga, which has almost everything, with its nuances, for a European company to work from here," he said, adding that, although Airzone is "mature", with almost 30 years of history, it still has the spirit of a "start-up" with new initiatives.

Antonia Gutiérrez accepted the research award with the words: "I hope science soon succeeds in making Alzheimer's nothing more than a bad memory." Warm and personal in her speech, she reminded the audience that "memories are the greatest treasure we have" and that this award will now form part of her own mosaic of memories.

In the society category, SUR recognised Carlos García-Galán, who stated that "in the next decade, the Moon will be our testing ground for going to Mars". "When we send a human to Mars, we will need generations of people from all over the world - from Torre, from Velez… We must think about that as we embark on this new mission," he said.

Basketball coach Ibon Navarro became Malagueño of the Year in the sports category, not without acknowledging the efforts of his players. "Winning is never easy and what we've achieved over these three years, even less so. Without the effort, sweat and commitment of the players, nothing would have been possible," he said.

The heartfelt and urgent speech of musician Delaossa defended Malaga as a city of its people. "Gentrification is changing neighbourhoods, raising prices, pushing lifelong residents out of their homes and diluting traditions. We cannot allow the city to become a backdrop: Malaga has soul, roots and an accent and that is non-negotiable." He described his hometown as "one that does not ask permission to be what it is" and vowed to continue fighting for its values.

Receiving the award for his professional career Paco Ávila called for teaching young people "to compete", highlighting the social value of entrepreneurship. He thanked his parents, friends and business partners, adding: "Without them, none of this would have been possible."

The final award, recognising her sporting career, was presented to Carolina Navarro, who dedicated it to her parents and siblings. "I may have won many titles, but the most important thing must always be the person. I'm an athlete for four or five hours of my day, but what remains is the person. My greatest achievement is the adapted padel school, Palas Para Todos. We have 80 boys and girls at Club Mediterráneo. We work to integrate them through sports."

In their opening speeches, regional minister of the economy Carolina España, deputy government delegate Javier Salas, head of the provincial authority Francisco Salado and Malaga mayor Francisco de la Torre highlighted SUR as an example of "serious, critical and rigorous" press for the development of democratic societies and praised the winners as examples of the province's dynamism.

The gala opened with a speech by SUR director Manolo Castillo, who said that the mission of a newspaper is to not only report news but to also "understand its people, take the pulse of the community and defend its truth, even when that truth is uncomfortable". He called for overcoming division and polarisation so that society can "solve urgent problems such as access to housing and transport. It is essential that no one in Malaga feels excluded".

Venezuelan-born singer Georgina, now based in Malaga, closed the gala by performing Eternos, a track from her upcoming album due next year, and paid tribute to the recently deceased Robe Iniesta of Extremoduro by singing one of his best-known songs: La Vereda de la Puerta de Atrás.