And then the Temperley club opened the doors for her and gave her a scholarship. He overcame prejudices and entered a new environment naturally. Today he is part of the Sub 14, although “I also play for the Sub 16, Sub 19 and the first division,” he said happily while making it clear that “I dream of going as far as possible.”
Cristian Grimaldi, a well-known former basketball player and coach, is the coordinator of the youth integration and inclusion project through this discipline, and proudly recounted Candela’s evolution. “I was going to the Physical Education Center Number 36 of Grandoli and Seguí, which brings together schools 114, 6,430 and 81. As there the students do their physical activities against their turn (within CEF 36), Candela got hooked and got hooked. fell in love with basketball ”.
But despite her shyness, Candela Díaz joined Grimaldi’s story and added: “The first time I saw the teacher, I had no idea how to play or how to play. I decided to give it a try and I loved it. I didn’t know whether to continue hockey, so I decided on this, and that’s how things turned out. For this reason, when Prof Grimaldi told me that there was a chance to go to Temperley through the project, I did not hesitate ”.
Both valued the Movete project playing basketball, and called on those boys who want to join, which began in the Parque del Mercado and Polideportivo 9 de Julio, but this year they were also enabled in Parque Oeste and Parque Yrigoyen. “The objective is to attract and include boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 13 from all the schools near municipal buildings, in a context of commitment and respect,” said Grimaldi. And he added based on Candela’s story: “Once the boy incorporated the guidelines after having approved during a period in the police, he gave them a scholarship to a club. To that we must add that when you have to make him a player card to federate it, the corresponding association bears the cost. Meanwhile, the medical check-up is also free. “
That is why Candela joined Temperley, a club that confirmed her constant social commitment when she decided to grant the teenager a scholarship in 2017 through the intervention of the renowned coach Leonel Señera. “My dream is to get as high as I can. The girls accompanied me in everything from the first time I came. They explained to me without problems the things that did not come out. They are part of my present,” he said.
While playing at Temperley, Candela is in her second year at Vigil College. “I try to improve and improve myself day by day, both in the study and in the sport,” said the base, who some time ago and at the age of 12 had the opportunity to be called up for the Rosario Sub 13 team.
As an extra piece of information, the basketball project carried out at CEF 36 began to intervene in the NBA junior program, which lands in different countries and chooses six different cities to play a tournament, both for boys and girls up to 12 years old. In 2019 Rosario achieved the title. “It was against Maciel, who had all players on his squad. Instead, we only had Cande who practiced this sport. Even so, we won the contest, ”said Turquito Grimaldi.