Madrid Charity Day Raises €55,000 For Syrian Refugees
Madrid Charity Day Raises €55,000 For Syrian Refugees
Rafael Nadal and Feliciano Lopez lead all-star exhibition
Stars of tennis, basketball and entertainment came together on Friday evening for a special charity event on the eve of the Mutua Madrid Open.
With the help of Rafael Nadal, Feliciano Lopez and Marat Safin, €55,000 was raised to help Syrian refugees through UNHCR (The UN agency for refugees), CEAR (Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid), UNICEF and Mensajeros de la Paz.
In a fun hour of exhibition tennis, two teams of tennis stars and celebrities entertained the fans on Court Manolo Santana.
Lopez led one team, featuring Nadal, Martina Hingis, actress Marian Hernandez, Real Madrid basketball star Rudy Fernandez, singer Edurne and former footballer Aitor Ocio. WTA star Garbine Muguruza captained the other team, featuring Safin, Simona Halep, socialite Alejandra Silva and actors Stany Coppet, Nerea Barros and Aldo Comas.
“It’s for the refugees who have been suffering this year,” said Lopez. “We had a lot of help from celebrities in the country: actors, Rudi from Real Madrid basketball and some other people. It was a nice time and hopefully we can do it every year. I think it’s a good activity for the tournament.”