Expectation has once again taken over Sanxenxo before the imminent new visit of Juan Carlos I. A week after his return to what is like his second home, neighbors, businessmen and authorities await him with the same interest as eleven months ago, in his first trip to Spain after settling in Abu Dhabi. They will receive you “with open arms”, as confirmed by the president of the Xunta de Galicia, Alfonso Rueda, and aware that your visit focuses all eyes on this tourist town, makes your name go around the world and attract visitors .
His visit will coincide with the Spanish Sailing Cup in the 6-meter class, a competition that is held with monthly regattas at the Real Club Náutico and which is of little consequence in the world of sailing.
The Emeritus used to compete in these tests with the Bribón, the boat adapted to his mobility problems that he was given, but it has not yet been confirmed if he will be able to participate on this occasion. It takes place on April 22 and 23 at the Real Club Náutico de Sanxenxo, chaired by his close friend Pedro Campos, also patron of the Bribón and host of the Emeritus in his chalet in Nanín during his stay, and it is expected that, at least, I can witness it.
Although he cannot go out to the regatta field, it will serve as a contact with the sail a year later, and to prepare for the World Championship in this category that will be held at the end of August on the Isle of Wight, England, where hope you can participate. The mayor of Sanxenxo, Telmo Martín, who assures that he lacks official confirmation of the visit, explains that “he comes to enjoy what he likes the most, which is sailing” and wishes that “I hope he is in good health to be able to enjoy the estuary» and go out into the water.
In Sanxenxo they have all their hopes that the King Emeritus recovers the custom prior to his time in the United Arab Emirates of visiting this town in the Galician Rías Baixas several times a year. “The important thing is that you rest, relax and come many more times,” insisted the mayor, who assures that in this town they are “”delighted every time the King Emeritus chooses to come to Sanxenxo” and acknowledges that he comes “less (times) than we expected.» And it is that after his visit in 2022, they trusted him to come as often as they were used to and, nevertheless, it has taken almost a year.
The personal relationship of businessmen and authorities with the King makes them want a reunion and they are also aware that it represents a claim to make this town known throughout the world and attract visitors. “We like that he is there, it is good for the tourist promotion of Sanxenxo and Galicia,” said the Galician president, recalling that on his last visit, “by an overwhelming majority, the Galician people showed him their affection.”
One of the unknowns of the visit centers on knowing if it will involve the public exhibition of last year, which in its day contrasted with the desire for privacy that he expressed in his letter a few months earlier and concluded with a visit to Zarzuela marked by the “weather wide of conversation. For the moment, his faithful friend Pedro Campos, always attentive to the press, has remained these days in a very discreet place, avoiding contact with the media or confirming the imminent arrival of the former Head of State.
Their mere presence will already arouse interest. The media has already triggered it and, as the mayor pointed out, “this promotion would be unthinkable” for Sanxenxo without the “good news about Sanxenxo” that comes with every visit by the monarch. The interest in the town as a destination is maintained for the rest of the year and last Easter there were no moorings available. “Imagine what it means to us when the king comes,” he insists.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project