The staging of the conference “Barça i Catalunya. Llums i ombres”, held yesterday at the Penya Blaugrana d’Igualada (Federació de Penyes Anoia, Alt Penedès i Garraf), had a special significance, as it marked the premiere of the conference’s namesake book. The venue was Casal Popular El Foment d’Igualada, where members of the Igualada supporters’ club, led by their president Toni Claramunt, were able to learn first-hand some of the details included in “Llums i ombres” and attend the conference on which the published book is based.
The event was led by Salva Torres, vice president of the Confederació Mundial de Penyes and author of the book, together with Josep Seguer, son of the legendary Barça player from the 1940s and 1950s; and with Aksana Vayevoda handling the technical side. Former players Ramon Alfonseda and “Tente” Sánchez also took part, contributing their experiences and anecdotes about some of the key moments covered in the book. Also noteworthy was the participation of Alba Vergés, former president of the Parliament of Catalonia, who congratulated Salva Torres and the project leaders and emphasised the necessary pedagogical work carried out through these conferences.
Distinguished collaborations
During the presentation of the book, Salva Torres wanted to thank everyone who collaborated on it: editor Eliseu Climent (author of the prologue); former Barça players Lluis Pujol, Ramon Alfonseda, Pedro Mari Zabalza, Pere Valentí Mora, Rafael Zuviría and “Tente” Sánchez; and journalists Toni Closa, Frederic Porta, Joan Poquí and David Salinas (authors of the epilogue). Thanks to all of them, episodes such as the 1961 European Cup final, the “oriünds scandal”, the struggle against the obstacles of the dictatorship, and the 1979 Cup Winners’ Cup final in Basel are thoroughly documented in the publication.
With the presentation of “Llums i ombres”, Salva Torres completes the “Barça i Catalunya” trilogy, which also includes the volumes “Els orígens de la simbiosi” and “Temps de Foscor”. Together, the three publications cover 80 years of FC Barcelona history, during which the ties to Catalan social, political and cultural reality shaped much of the Club’s evolution. All three have been published by Editorial Base. In addition, through the Confederació Mundial de Penyes, the three conferences remain available to any penya wishing to offer them to their members.
End of the season for PB Igualada
The launch event for the book “Llums i Ombres” also served as the season-ending ceremony for the Penya Blaugrana d’Igualada. During the event, the penya presented a silver badge to one of its members in recognition of his more than 25 years of loyalty to the club, and thanked all its members for sharing a great season with Barça. A social dinner brought the day to a close.
