The Spanish monarchs Felipe VI and Queen Letizia will present this year's Princess of Girona Awards on 28th June in Vilablareix, not in Girona. Girona city council announced in January they wouldn't give the awards' foundation permission to hold this year's ceremony in the city's auditorium, claiming planned construction works.
The Princess of Girona Foundation said then that they would look for alternative locations, although they would prefer to find somewhere in Girona: "From here we'll study alternatives. We're looking at locations, but it's still too early. We want to do it in Girona, but we're assessing [the situation]."
The prize ceremony will now be held at the Espai Mas Marroch-Centre d'Esdeveniments at Celler de Can Roca in Vilablareix. The event will start with a debate between basketball player Pau Gasol, swimmer Teresa Perales and cardiologist Valentí Fuster, moderated by journalist Pepa Fernández.
This will be followed by their prizes being awarded to José Miguel Bermúdez, an aeronautical engineer; María Escudero, a chemical engineer; Guillermo Mínguez, a chemist; Arancha Martínez, a social entrepreneur; Soleá Morente, a singer; Pablo Fernández, a cellist and Article 1, a French organisation dedicated to fighting for equal opportunities for all.
The Prince of Girona Foundation was created in 2009 by a group of Catalan businesspeople and financiers, with the patronage of Felipe, then heir to the throne, principe/princesa de Girona being one of the titles of the Spanish heir apparent. The organisation aims to "support young people in their professional and personal development" through a number of initiatives, including the prizes, which it awards yearly in five categories: Arts and Letters, Social, Entity, Scientific Research and Business.