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The San Juan awards

In 1988, the Promoting Commission experienced profound changes. The incorporation of the so-called Advisory Board, with important personalities in the city such as the late José González Dopeso, brought with it that new channels of financing were opened and, above all, that the municipal administration increased its contributions and supports, something fundamental considering that the objective pursued was none other than to enhance our activities, dimensioning the party.

Among the many projects we have been shaping in those days, in addition to the recovery of the figure of the Meiga Mayor Infantil and the establishment of the Feast of the Poetic Solstice for its annual proclamation -today of exaltation-, the creation of the “San Juan” Awards stood out, which represented an important qualitative leap in the social projection of the Commission.

The “San Juan” Awards project, born in within the Board of Directors of the Commission, it was attributed as a primary objective to annually reward the Institutions, Entities and individuals who, in their respective specialties, stand out the most in defending the interests of La Coruña and its people.

For this, five awards were originally created to reward institutional work; the social; the cultural; sports and journalism.

The project established that the award of each of these Awards would entail the delivery of a diploma and the statuette with the flower of the Cardo de San Juan in silver, similar to the one that had been delivered, to the winners of the annual poetry awards, since 1971 and who, having endowed these With an economic allocation, it no longer made sense to hand them the figure of the Thistle.

The aforementioned project also established that the delivery of these awards is would verify, from the hands of the Greater Meiga, during the Poetic Coven Festival, an act in which the central female figure of the party was then proclaimed, following the date of grant.

Approved the creation of these awards by the Board of Directors, it They went on to report to the Advisory Board, which highly valued the proposal, giving its approval.

Once the project was approved, it was deemed convenient to rename each of the prizes, using the names of people linked to the city or to our BONFIRE ; after lengthy debate, the proposed and approved names were as follows:

1º.- “Mayor Francisco Vázquez” Award for work institutional.

2º.- “José González Dopeso” Award for work social.

3º.- “Lieutenant General Fernández Vallespín” Award to the culture.

4th.- “María Pita” Award for Sport. < / span>

5th.- “Journalist Bocelo” award for journalism. < / span>

As can be easily deduced, the names chosen corresponded to the Mayor of the city; the President of the Advisory Board; the Honorary President of the Commission, by that time already disappeared; to the heroine of our city par excellence and to a member of the Advisory Board who, over the years, had become an icon of journalism in A Coruña.

Approved the names of the awards it was decided that except for the two disappeared – María Pita and Lieutenant General Carlos González Vallespín-, the remaining three were awarded the first of the prizes awarded in the specialty that bore his name.

Despite all the Rules for awarding prizes, which It was already included in the initial project, it established that these awards would be granted annually by a jury outside the Board of Directors of the Promoting Commission, in which only two of its members would be integrated, in order to guarantee equity at the time of the concession .

Over the years, the “Periodista Bocelo” award, to journalism, was renamed the “Meiga Mayor” award to coruñesismo, changing shortly afterwards the name for the “Marineda” award to coruñesismo and later that of “Chelo Liñeira”, also coruñesismo, in memory of this great collaborator of the Commission already deceased.

For their part, also over the years, they changed in some Measure the objectives of these awards, expanding the scenario of possible winners, leaving their names as follows:

1º.- “Mayor Francisco Vázquez” Award for work institutional or business initiative.

2º.- “José González Dopeso” Award for work social and citizen values.

3º.- “Lieutenant General Fernández Vallespín” Award to the culture and artistic values.

4th.- “María Pita” Award for sport. < / span>

5th.- “Chelo Liñeira” Award for coruñesismo. < / span>

In 2008 to mark the 800th anniversary of the award of the Puebla Charter and the Benavente Charter to the city by the SM King D. Alfonso IX, the creation of an award was approved that bore the name of this monarch and that served to reward the most distinguished Coruñés of the year; it was also established that said award, from now on, would appear at the top of the rest. The first winner of this distinction was the then Mayor, Javier Losada de Azpiazu.

Later, in 2010, the “Meiga” award was recreated Mayor ”but, this time, to distinguish the most innovative Company.

The first Grant Regulation refers, as stated above, that the winners will have to be from A Coruña or be linked to the city in defense of their interests, later, with a regulatory amendment, this range was opened and today any Institution, Entity or individual, whether or not from A Coruña, can be the subject of the award. / span>

On 2012 a new Prize Regulation was drawn up which was approved by the Board of Directors. This new Regulation modified, among other things, the names of the Awards that were as follows:

1st. “King Alfonso IX” Award for institutional work.

2nd. “María Pita” Award for citizen values.

3rd. “Lieutenant General Fernández Vallespín” Award for artistic culture and values.

4th. “Riazor” award for sport.

5th. “Marineda” award for coruñesismo.

6th. “Meiga Mayor” Award for entrepreneurship and innovative effort.

Another of the innovations that appeared in this new Regulation is the referring, as it has been said, to the territorial scope that was no longer restricted to that of the city, as it had been applicable until that date.

Currently, these awards continue to be awarded over the course of the Feast of the Poetic Coven, act of exaltation of the Greater Meiga and her Meigas de Honor, although, on 2019, they received new names, renaming one of them with “Inés De Ben”, in memory of one of the anonymous defenders of the city in 1589, remaining as follows:

1st. “King Alfonso IX” Award for institutional work.

2nd. “María Pita” Award for citizen values.

3rd. “Lieutenant General Fernández Vallespín” Award for artistic culture and values.

4th. “Meiga Mayor” award for sport.

5th. “Marineda” award for coruñesismo.

6th. “Inés De Ben” Award for entrepreneurship and innovative effort.

The “San Juan” Awards Jury, made up of a total of twenty members, is articulated on the basis of a President, a Secretary and eighteen Vowels, being made up of personalities from the world of politics, culture, the media, liberal professionals, Senior and Honorable Friends of other editions and two members of the Promoting Commission and two of the Meigas Association.

The Regulations prevent each member of the Jury from presenting, with advance, the candidates you want to each of the Awards, which are defended at the annual meeting that takes place the Friday before the celebration of the Feast of the Poetic Coven.

For the present edition of 2020, for the 5th centenary of the celebration in the city of Cortes in 1520, a new modification will be proposed in the names of the Prizes, which will be as follows:

1st. “King Alfonso IX” Award for institutional work.

2nd. “Rey Carlos I” Award for entrepreneurship and innovative effort.

3rd. “María Pita” Award for citizen values.

4th. “Lieutenant General Fernández Vallespín” Award for artistic culture and values.

5th. “Marineda” award for sport.

6th. “Inés De Ben” Award for coruñesismo.

Eugenio Fernández Barallobre.

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