Tribute

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, June 19, 2009: On April 29, 1959 at 16:00 hours a Douglas C-47 of Iberia Airlines took off from Barcelona for its Madrid destination. The aircraft would never arrive. Succumbing to strong turbulence, the plane crashed tragically into the Sierra Valdemeca of the Cuenca mountains, yielding 28 casualties. Among the dead, 4 Spanish gymnasts. Pablo Muller, 16 years old and Champion of Catalogne, Raul Pajares, 22; Jose Aguilar, 17; and Joaquin Blume, 25 years old and Artistic Gymnastics European Champion.

At the funeral services, the Spanish Ministry of Sports posthumously awarded Joaquin Blume with the Gold Medal of National Sport Merit.

50 years later, Spanish gymnasts haven’t forgotten the exceptional gymnast who left his mark on generations to come. 1949 Spanish Champion at the age of 15, he held on to his title for all of 10 years, and took the Gold at the 1955 Mediterranean Games in Barcelona. The same year, he placed 10th at the European Championships in Frankfurt. In 1956, Blume was set to participate in the Olympic Games in Melbourne (AUS), but a boycott resulting from the invasion of Hungary would decide otherwise. The next year was much more promising. Joaquin took the European Champion title in the All-around, the Pommel Horse, the Bars and at Rings in Paris!

Today, an annual celebration is held in his memory at the Blume Festival in Las Palmas, the 48th edition of which was organised in November 2008 with the incredible participation of 1,800 gymnasts from 22 countries. The event is one of the most popular events on the Gymnastics for All calendar.