Rafa Nadal and Ricky Rubio preside over the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar graduation

Manacor, 8 June 2022. After an emotional and affectionate academic ceremony, 33 students completed their school education by graduating from the Rafa Nadal Academy International School, the international American school located on the grounds of the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar.

 

As is now traditional, Rafa Nadal presided over the ceremony and spoke to the families, teachers and young students, congratulating them for having finished a very important stage of their lives. During his speech, Rafa wanted to highlight the importance of fighting to overcome adversity:

 

“I know that the fashion now is immediacy and that patience is not a greatly valued virtue. When we want something, all we have to do is pick up our mobiles and make a purchase, read an article or get the information we need.

 

But today I would like to remind you that the greatest goals in life are not achieved from one day to the next. They are achieved by fighting, struggling and learning when you fall down. I’m convinced that all of you will be great professionals and good people, which is the most important thing. But I can also tell you, through experience, that along the way you will have unexpected moments and disappointments that will make you question everything. In those moments, you must rely on your family, your loved ones and the people you trust, who will remind you what your dreams and goals were so that you can dream of them again.

 

Failure is only bad if you don’t know how to pick yourself up and fight again. Sometimes you will fall down over and over again. But it’s then that you have to be humble and accept that sometimes things don’t go the way we want.

 

That’s why, in a society that wants things in the short term, I prefer to reaffirm two virtues that seem to have gone out of fashion: humility and perseverance. If you are patient and you are persistent and you have the necessary optimism not to give up, you will gain agreat deal in this life.

 

But, I’d also like to tell you that virtues are not acquired immediately, you also have to work on them every day, in your daily activity. Being punctual, training as much as required, studying every day, respecting and obeying your parents, being generous with your friends, being tolerant of the people around you... These are the small things that make the difference and those that will make you better professionals and great people for society”.

 

While at previous ceremonies the special guests have been Pau Gasol, David Ferrer, Ona Carbonell, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova (the latter two remotely), this year the honour fell to Ricky Rubio. The NBA player also encouraged the young players to work hard, give their all and not to give up in the face of adversity.

 

Alexander Marcos Walker (Director of the Rafa Nadal School), and graduates Daniel Azrak Marbán (Valedictorian), Xavier Sabach (Salutatorian) also spoke at the ceremony.

 

The climax of the ceremony was marked by the throwing of the caps into the air and the presentation of the diplomas by Ricky Rubio, who individually congratulated each of the young students, who are now preparing for university.

 

What is the Rafa Nadal International School?

 

The Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar is also home to the Rafa Nadal International School, a mixed Anglo-American international educational school for children from 3 to 18 years of age. While the original concept of the school was designed with the goal of enabling the players at the Academy to be able to combine their tennis and academic educations, from the start, Rafa wanted to open its doors to the children of Mallorca, whether or not they played tennis, so that everyone could benefit from the facilities and the academicprogramme. This means the players at the RNA share the classrooms with other students, which encourages rewarding exchanges and educational and cultural experiences.

 

The syllabus at the RNIS has been designed with a distinctive programme that prepares all students both professionally and personally through the development of the intellectual, emotional and social aptitudes necessary for having a positive impact on their respective communities. The modern, comfortable, technological and sporty facilities at the RNIS constitute the ideal environment for learning.

 

One of the Rafa Nadal International School's biggest goals is to offer its students the opportunity to access a university in the United States or any other part of the world, with a tennis and/or academy scholarship. In the 2021/2022 academic year, 100% of the tennis-playing students that graduated and planned to go to the USA to study, were accepted and received scholarships at US universities. The rest of the graduates started their university education at centres in the UK, Spain, Germany, Holland and the UAE.