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Mireia Belmonte presents her new watch in support of Campus Can Ruti

- Campus Can Ruti, Institutional

Mireia Belmonte the Olympic swimming medallist from Badalona visited the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) on Campus Can Ruti on Wednesday 29 May. The event marked the start of a collaboration in support of the Amics de Can Ruti (Friends of Can Ruti) to raise awareness of the importance of health research. During her visit, she presented a watch, which she helped to design, that will soon be available through the web and events organized by the Amics de Can Ruti. All proceeds from the sales of the watch will go to research projects on the campus.

After visiting the IGTP laboratories and talking to researchers working there, Belmonte thanked staff, "for the important task that you are carrying out for all of us. Many people suffering from diseases have a more hopeful future thanks to the work of research centres like this."

It is a busy time for Belmonte, who is one month from the World Championships in Korea. She admitted that it was tough and that she was working hard to improve her times. Right now, she is in a three-week training period of sea level in preparation.

Dr Manel Puig, Director of the IGTP highlighted the importance of Belmonte joining as an ambassador for the Amics de Can Ruti. "It's easy to find parallels between our work and sports; we work day by day to improve people's health, Mireia works day by day to improve her times. As she is from Badalona, she is very familiar with the Can Ruti Hospital and we are thrilled that she has agreed to be the face of the Amics de Can Ruti, even more so that she has wanted to be involved with the watches for research project."

The Amics de Can Ruti is a fundraising programme for the various leading health and research institutions located on the campus in Badalona, hometown to the elite sportswoman. This is why Belmonte has chosen to be an ambassador for research at Can Ruti, where more than 3,500 health professionals and 700 researchers work daily to improve people's health.

Watches for Research

World record-holder in swimming and Olympic gold in Rio in 2016, nobody understands the importance of time better than Mireia Belmonte. To help win time for research at Can Ruti, she has designed a watch together with the Amics de Can Ruti. The watch is in her favourite colours, with an image of the campus and her signature. It will soon be available through the Amics de Can Ruti website. The money raised will go to support the research effort on the Campus.