Miguel de la Quadra Salcedo

Miguel de la Quadra-Salcedo y Gayarre was born 30 April 1932 in Madrid. His family moved when he was five years old to the city of Pamplona, capital of the Autonomous Community of Navarra, where he studied the college carrier of agricultural engineer, highlighting more as athlete. In his youth he was part of the Athletics Section of the Real Madrid F.C., winning nine Spanish tournaments: six in the discus throw, two in weightlifting and one in the hammer throw. In 1960 he participated in the Rome Olympic Games, winning medals for Spain, and between 1961-1963 Salcedo worked as ethno botanical in the Amazonian jungle for the Colombian government. In 1965 in Tokyo he married Marisol de Amusendi, his lifelong wife. Returning to Spain in this same year, Televisión Española (TVE) hired Salcedo to work as journalist and reporter. In his first job he was sent as war correspondent to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where he was arrested and condemned to death by the military after to film the execution of 300 prisoners, escaping thank to the help of Cuban soldiers in the country. Too covered the War of Vietnam, as well as Augusto Pinochet's coup d'état in Chile in 1973, between other historical happenings. As journalist he interviewed great personalities as Dalai Lama, Salvador Allende, Indira Gandhi or Pablo Neruda, working in addition in a TV show called La Actualidad Española (The Spanish Actuality) together journalist César Pérez de Tudela and TV host, biologist and activist for the animals' right Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente, director and creator of El hombre y la tierra: Serie ibérica (1974). Mixing his work as journalist he did TV carrier appearing in several programs as Los reporteros (1974), Españoles en el Pacífico (1980) and the TV contest A la caza del tesoro (1984), between others. Since 1979, Salcedo created "Aventura 92", later renamed as "Ruta Quetzal" (Quetzal Route) and finally "Ruta BBVA" (BBVA Route), an program for children which started uninterruptedly since then, where along of 45 days during the months of June and July children of 58 countries of 16-17 years old are exchanged to travel across all South America in order to make geographical, historical and environment explorations and know different ancient tribes living in the jungle. This expedition has been declared in 1990 of "Global Interest" by UNESCO. Retired from the TV in his last period, and reducing considerably his appearances, Salcedo still working as journalist and explorer across the years. Miguel de la Quadra-Salcedo died in May 20, 2016 (he was 84) after suffering a long disease, matching with the 510th anniversary of the Christopher Columbus' death (America's discoverer in 1492). He passed away surrounded by his family and friends in his house of Madrid, leaving an immaculate legacy as athlete, explorer, reporter, journalist, cultural promoter and humanist, and being recognized as one of the most important and dearest figures in Spain and so much South American countries by all his contribution for culture and peace.