Real Madrid great Santamaría dies at 96, critically endangered orangutan born at Madrid zoo, Alcaraz pulls out of Barcelona Open with wrist injury, and more news from Spain this Thursday April 16th.
Real Madrid great Santamaria dies at 96
Former Real Madrid player and Spain’s 1982 World Cup coach José Emilio Santamaría has died at the age of 96, Los Blancos said on Wednesday.
Real Madrid mourned “one of the greatest legends of our club and of world football”.
Centre-back Santamaría, who joined Real Madrid in 1957 from Uruguayan side Nacional, played in one of the most decorated eras in the club’s history.
“Alongside Di Stefano, Puskas, Gento and Kopa, that team began to build the legend of Real Madrid,” said Real Madrid chief Florentino Pérez.
Santamaría, born in Uruguay, won four European Cups with Madrid in 1958, 1959, 1960 and 1966, as well as six La Liga titles among other trophies.
He played 25 times for Uruguay before becoming a naturalised Spaniard and playing at the 1962 World Cup for Spain, whom he went on to coach.
Critically endangered orangutan born at Madrid zoo
A critically endangered Borneo orangutan has been born at Madrid’s zoo, described by keepers as strong and developing normally.
After an eight-and-a-half-month pregnancy, mother Surya gave birth to a male weighing about 1.5 kilos (3.3 pounds) on April 2nd, the Madrid Zoo Aquarium said in a statement.
The zoo released a video showing Surya cradling the newborn, which will be named through a public vote from a list of options proposed by the caretakers.
Surya has now given birth to four offspring, with keepers describing her maternal care from the outset as exemplary, and the baby feeding regularly, a key indicator of healthy development.
“When the baby is nursing, everything stops. She stays completely still until he finishes, and only then moves to eat or do anything else. She is a real supermom,” said Maica Espinosa, a primate keeper at the zoo.
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Alcaraz pulls out of Barcelona Open with wrist injury
Carlos Alcaraz withdrew on Wednesday from the Barcelona Open because of a wrist injury that troubled him in his first-round match, potentially casting doubt over his Roland Garros defence.
“I won’t be able to continue in the tournament,” Alcaraz told reporters a day after his win over Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen.
“I felt my wrist give out on a return during the match. After the tests, we saw that it’s a more serious injury than any of us expected, and I have to listen to my body so it doesn’t affect me in the future.”
It is the second time in three years injury has forced Alcaraz to withdraw from the Barcelona tournament. He won it 2022 and 2023, and finished runner-up to Holger Rune 12 months ago.
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Spain must distribute €27 billion EU ‘Next Generation’ funds in five months
With the August 2026 deadline fast approaching, Spain has just under five months to use up the remaining EU funds, given to speed up recovery following the Covid pandemic.
Spain has launched several EU-funded projects worth €90.718 billion, however only €63.403 billion has actually been allocated.
This is a difference of around €27.3 billion, which the government must allocate before the impending deadline.
The Ministry of Economy, however, denies the existence this difference. A spokesperson for the department insisted that this difference is largely due to limitations in the measuring tools, which, according to them, produces time lapses and recording problems which underestimate actual spending.
With additional reporting from AFP
