The fourth edition of the “García Bragado – OAFI- Kern Pharma Scholarships” promotes the careers of the new generations of Spanish athletics.

• The scholarships were awarded on Wednesday, 8 October, at Kern Pharma’s headquarters in Terrassa (Barcelona).

• The grants promote healthy sporting activities and reinforce inclusion.

• The scholarship athletes have received a total of €600 to continue advancing their athletic careers.

Barcelona, 8 October 2025- Once again, a new edition of the “García Bragado – OAFI- Kern Pharma Scholarships” is here. These grants are promoted in conjunction with former Olympic athlete Jesús Ángel García Bragado and are endorsed by Kern Pharma. The scholarships, which were awarded at Kern Pharma’s headquarters in Terrassa, serve to highlight the importance and values of sport among future Spanish athletes, who also encourage other athletes to take up sport and healthy lifestyles.

In this edition, a total of 10 athletes received scholarships, each worth €600, to continue pursuing their sporting and athletic careers. As in the previous edition, two young people with disabilities were among those selected, reinforcing the organisation’s commitment to inclusivity in the scholarships.

The selected athletes are in their teens, aged between 12 and 16, and are members of the Tajamar (Madrid), Club Javi Conde (Bizkaia) and Unió Atlética de Terrassa (Barcelona) athletics clubs. All of them stand out as promising emerging athletes, with recognised merits in different disciplines: cross-country, indoor track, hurdles, combined events, throwing, pole vault, among others.

A committee of leading experts

Jesús Ángel (Chuso) García Bragado, Olympic athlete and world champion in race walking; Dr. Josep Vergés, founder and chairman of OAFI; Dr. José María Villalón, head of medical services at Atlético de Madrid and patron of OAFI, who attended the meeting remotely, and Dr. Ana Vieta, director of the Scientific-Technical Area at Kern Pharma, were responsible for selecting the young scholarship recipients.

“It is a real pleasure to celebrate the fourth edition of the García Bragado Scholarships, which were created with one main objective: to support young athletes who want to develop their sporting careers with good results. I would just like to thank Kern Pharma, once again, for its involvement, and OAFI for its constant support, which allows these young people and their families to continue pursuing sport with great enthusiasm and good results,” said García Bragado.

For its part, Dr. Vergés, presidente y fundador de OAFI, has emphasised the importance of promoting healthy sporting activities at an early age: ‘Encouraging healthy and safe sport at this age is key to the development of athletes and to preventing osteoarticular pathologies that may arise in the future.’

Finally, Dr. Ana Vieta, directora del Área Científico-Técnica de Kern Pharma, commented that, ‘For Kern Pharma, supporting these initiatives and sport is part of our identity and commitment. Promoting projects such as these García Bragado Scholarships not only allows us to develop the talent of young athletes, but also to give a voice to the efforts of people with disabilities who overcome barriers day after day.’

High-intensity training increases the risk of osteoarthritis, as well as hip and knee chondropathies. In fact, according to data from OAFI, in Spain, it is estimated that 30% of elite athletes will suffer from osteoarthritis.

The initiative is in line with Kern Pharma’s commitment to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3 on Health and Well-being and SDG 10 on Reducing Inequalities. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical company’s support for these scholarships demonstrates its commitment to sport, to people’s health and, above all, to caring for their well-being at all stages of their lives.

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