Ignacio Galán welcomes race walker María Pérez to Torre Iberdrola after her two gold medals in Tokyo

The Executive Chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, today welcomed María Pérez to Torre Iberdrola, the company’s headquarters in Bilbao, to congratulate her in person for making history at the Tokyo 2025 Athletics World Championships. The race walker won two new gold medals in the 20 and 35-kilometre race walk events, a feat she had already achieved at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. With her four world titles —an unprecedented achievement in both women’s and men’s athletics in Spain— the athlete from Granada has firmly established herself as the greatest Spanish athlete of all time, both for her record and her impact on the history of national sport.

María is part of the Iberdrola Ambassadors programme, which includes 35 sportswomen and role models who promote visibility and female leadership in sport. The company seeks to give them maximum exposure through the media and social networks.

Ignacio Galán congratulated her on behalf of all the company’s employees and said: “We feel deep pride and admiration for athletes like María, who through their effort, sacrifice and commitment represent the very best of Spanish sport. Her example inspires thousands of people and shows that talent, when combined with perseverance, knows no limits. For Iberdrola, it is an honour to have allies like her in promoting equality and visibility for women in sport. Her success in Tokyo is also a collective triumph for the values we share: self-improvement, teamwork and passion for what we do.”

The race walker, for her part, said: “I would like to thank Iberdrola for its unconditional support, which has been essential throughout my career, and also for its commitment to women’s sport. For me, it is an honour to be an ambassador for this great project. Furthermore, being part of the Honorary Jury of the Iberdrola Supera Awards is another step forward in this relationship, at a very special moment for Spanish athletics. I am proud to share values that promote talent and give visibility to women in sport.”

Two decades promoting equality through sport

Since 2016, Iberdrola has been the main driver of women’s sport. At present, through its sponsorship, it supports 35 national federations and gives its name to more than 100 competitions. Through this commitment, in these nine years, the number of female members in these federations has increased by over 80%, reaching almost 820,000.

Each year, the Group presents the Iberdrola Supera Awards to recognise and raise awareness of the best projects launched in Spain to promote gender equality through sport. These awards, worth €50,000 for each winner, select projects in the categories of Supera Base, Supera Competición, Supera Inclusión, Supera Social, Supera Difusión and Supera Impulso Rural, the latter also receiving €50,000 for its development.

The company’s commitment also extends to Paralympic sport. Since its creation in 2005, it has collaborated with the Spanish Paralympic Committee’s (CPE) ADOP Plan (Paralympic Objective Support Programme), with the aim of providing Spanish athletes with the best conditions to prepare and compete successfully in all events.

Furthermore, Iberdrola, through its Foundation in Spain and together with the CPE, offers Paralympic athletes benefiting from the ADOP Plan scholarships for university and postgraduate studies. This collaboration agreement aims to facilitate professional training for athletes to support their future employment once their sporting careers have ended.

Lastly, it is worth recalling that the company is one of the collaborating partners in the Universo Mujer programme, a comprehensive initiative for the development and advancement of women in society that implements actions contributing to social transformation through the values of women’s sport.