The Sports Merit Medal of Honor was awarded to Louletano Sports Club on Saturday, July 15th, in a ceremony presided over by João Paulo Correia, Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, which took place in the Main Hall of the Town Hall of Loulé.
The member of the Government justified the distinction with the «special circumstance» of 2023 being the year of the centenary of the club.
«We have followed a very tight criterion, that of the round anniversary when the clubs are 50, 75, 100 or over 100 years old. Louletano joins the lot of century-old sports clubs in our country», explained João Paulo Correia.
António do Adro, president of the club for more than two decades, considered that «this Medal belongs to all Louléans» and highlighted the importance of the club in terms of training in the most diverse modalities, namely cycling, football, futsal, gymnastics, swimming , powerlifting and triathlon.
Vítor Aleixo, mayor of Loulé, underlined the importance of this institution for the community, «a club where many generations of athletes have passed».
And if it was in cycling that Louletano became best known, even for being a modality that has in this municipality «a very old phalanx of enthusiasts», the mayor of Loulé recalled the name of the Englishman Cayn Theakston, the cyclist who brought to the Louletano a victory in the Tour of Portugal in Bicycle.
Louletano was founded on June 6, 1923, a period rich in terms of the emergence of sports groups in the country.
«The 20s and 30s of the last century were very virtuous decades from the point of view of sports dynamics», recalled João Paulo Correia.
«The eclecticism that characterized that period was also at the genesis of the Algarve club – and its name – marking the history of Louletano until today. But among the various sports of the club, cycling is the one that has given the most “media attention” and for which Louletano is known in all parts of the country, as was highlighted during this session», according to the Câmara de Loulé
In addition to being the oldest club in the municipality, with a large local presence, where many generations of Loulé fans have passed, it is also at the regional level that LDC stands out as one of the main clubs in the Algarve.
«It is an identity mark of the municipality of Loulé, a regional reference and over the decades it has fulfilled the purpose of its foundation, which is to be a club that offers more than one modality to the young people of its municipality», said João Paulo Correia.
During this homage to the Loulé club, the Secretary of State also had the opportunity to visit the Louletano headquarters, near Avenida José da Costa Mealha.
In May, during Municipality Week, the club had already been awarded the Medal of Municipal Merit - Gold Grade. This month, the Algarve Football Association awarded the Manager of the Year award to its president, António do Adro.
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