Rafael Nadal, beyond the court: his foundation and much more | ATP Tour

Rafael Nadal

Nadal, beyond the court: his foundation and much more

A review of the solidarity work of the Spanish

November 22, 2024

Being a great athlete goes far beyond the results achieved competing.

Rafael Nadal knew how to understand it very well from the first moment, getting involved in many social projects and creating the Rafa Nadal Foundation in 2010, thus laying a solid foundation to help through sport, accompanying children and young people towards a quality future.

“I have always considered that for personal and professional development, opportunities are essential,” Nadal explained in the foundation’s report, published on the occasion of the organization’s tenth anniversary. “In 2010, we understood that I was in a position in which I could contribute to creating them, and that was when we decided to start this life project. The truth is that I never imagined that we would create an organization like the one that is today the Rafa Nadal Foundation,” added the Spaniard.

“I was clear that sport had to be present, because in addition to being my way of life and my passion, I believe it is a very powerful tool for transformation. “Sport is one of the bases of our project,” added the champion of 22 Grand Slam titles. “In addition, there is another fundamental aspect that we have wanted to capture within our philosophy. Teamwork and always surrounding yourself with good people has been key in my sporting career and at the foundation we have also kept this in mind from the beginning.”

In all these years, the Rafa Nadal Foundation has covered the needs of many children and young people, establishing a wide range of programs such as the NETS (Nadal Educational Tennis School) project in India, the ‘Más Que Tenis’ meetings (where athletes meet with intellectual disabilities from different schools throughout Spain), the Olazábal and Nadal solidarity golf tournaments, the opening of foundation centers in Palma de Mallorca, Valencia or Madrid or solidarity races, among many other initiatives.

Currently, the foundation has several active projects such as ‘Play All’, which has direct beneficiaries of children and adolescents who are in situations of social vulnerability and seeks to provide access to tennis to those who would find it difficult to practice this sport.

‘Study&Play’ is another project underway, which seeks to offer young people who practice a sport regularly and with dedication the opportunity to combine training and competition with studies, accessing scholarships granted by North American universities.

Rafael Nadal established the Rafa Nadal Foundation in 2010.” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2024/11/14/15/44/rafa-nadal-foundation-embed.jpg”>
_{^{Photo credit: Rafa Nadal Foundation}}

Beyond all the work done through his foundation, Nadal has not hesitated to roll up his sleeves and collaborate on different causes throughout all these years.

For example, the Spaniard has participated in ‘Match for Africa’, an exhibition match he played with Roger Federer on December 21, 2010. First, the Spaniard and Swiss faced each other at the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland, in an event that had The goal is to raise funds for the Roger Federer Foundation, which supports education, transportation and feeding children in Africa.

The next day, Nadal and Federer met again at the Caja Mágica in Madrid, this time with the funds raised going to the Rafa Nadal Foundation.

In 2020, Nadal and Federer participated in the sixth edition of ‘Match for Africa’. It was on February 7, 2020 in Cape Town, South Africa, the home country of Federer’s mother and the focus of his charitable foundation. Before they met in a singles match, Nadal and Federer joined Trevor Noah (host of ‘The Daily Show’) and Bill Gates to play a doubles match. In total, the party counted 51,954 people and more than 3.5 million dollars were raised to benefit children’s education in Africa.

Rafael Nadal and Trevor Noah at the sixth edition of ‘Match for Africa’ in February 2020.” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2024/11/15/15/10/rafael-nadal-trevor-noah-match-for-africa-2020.jpg”>
_{^{Photo credit: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images/Getty Images}}

In 2018, during the Sant Llorenç des Cardassar floods, which left 13 dead and nearly 300 buildings affected in Mallorca, Nadal did not hesitate to put on his work overalls, grab a broom and start bailing out water like one of them, helping the local residents. In addition, he donated one million euros to those affected.

Nadal also became actively involved during the health crisis resulting from the pandemic caused by Covid-19. The Spanish tennis player joined basketball player Pau Gasol and Cruz Roja Responde to try to raise 11 million euros to help people affected by the pandemic, obtaining medical supplies, building infrastructure and contributing to the most vulnerable families.

The perfect example of why the legacy that the Spaniard has left after his retirement transcends sporting titles and successes.