Última atualização em janeiro 13, 2023

A social project named Sueños de Arena (“Dreams of Sand”), chaired by Alejandro Veliz, a graduate of the Official Master’s Degree in Sport Management and co-founded with professional sandboarder Victor ‘Dito’ Chavez, is using the thrill of sandboarding to empower underprivileged youth in the Peruvian desert.

O projeto, which aims to promote and develop the discipline of sandboarding in Peru, provides free sport programs for children from poor communities in Ica.

These programs include sandboarding lessons on the slopes of the village-oasis of Huacachina, condicionamento físico e mental, motivational speeches, workshops focused on developing values, and nutritional supplements.

"Sonhos de Areia" (sonhos de areia) sandboarding social project in Huacachina. Ica, Peru.
O projeto visa capacitar crianças vulneráveis ​​em Huacachina através do sandboard.

Empowering Youth Through Sandboarding

Dreams of Sand oferece um programa desportivo gratuito a crianças e jovens com idades compreendidas entre os 6 e 17, muitos dos quais vêm de famílias de baixa renda, dando-lhes acesso às seguintes atividades:

  • 1. Aulas de sandboard duas vezes por semana nas dunas de Huacachina.
  • 2. Condicionamento físico e mental.
  • 3. Discursos motivacionais que visam aumentar a autoestima e promover o aprimoramento.
  • 4. Workshops focados no desenvolvimento de valores e no apoio ao desenvolvimento de carreira.
  • 5. Envolvimento de amigos próximos e familiares da criança.
  • 6. Recolhendo lixo no deserto.
  • 7. Suplementos nutricionais à dieta das crianças.

Sueños de Arena”projeto social em Huacachina. Ica, Peru.

Discovering new talent

O projeto sem fins lucrativos é financiado por Aqui Areia Xsports, a sandboarding and sand skiing school that also caters to adventure tourism in Huacachina.

The school is chaired by Dito Chavez, uma four-time sandboarding world champion and the first Peruvian to qualify for a snowboarding world championships. Dito’s vision for the project is to empower young people to gain confidence in themselves and to have a more positive outlook on life.

The Snowboard Club Peru was founded in 2019 by Alejandro Veliz, a graduate of the Official Master’s Degree in Sport Management from Johan Cruyff Institute in Spain, who discovered sandboarding after moving to Peru, which does not have suitable glaciers for snowboarding.

The club is working on developing talents from other clubs, with the goal of having a national team that includes talents from other clubs in a year and a half and they are also collaborating in the organization of the Snowboard World Cup 2023, to be held in Georgia from February 26th to March 6th.

From Snow to Sand

The desert equivalent of the competition, the Sandboard World Cup, is poised to take place some times in 2023 também, after a 2-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, although alternative competitions have taken place on a smaller scale in Chile and Germany.

The Dragon Cup, held in Iquique, Chile, has become the de facto world championship in the past years, drawing sandboarding enthusiasts from around the world. Enquanto isso, the SandSpirit competition takes place annually in Hirschau, Alemanha, on the man-made sand mountain of Monte Kaolino, bringing the thrills of sand surfing to competitors in Europe.

Um local para a Copa do Mundo de Sandboard 2023 ainda não foi confirmado, mas Huacachina é um dos candidatos mais prováveis.

À medida que o esporte ganha popularidade em escala global, o projeto Dreams of Sand está fazendo uma verdadeira diferença na vida dos jovens no deserto peruano, e os esforços da organização para promover o sandboard e o snowboard no Peru estão ajudando a criar um futuro melhor para essas crianças.


Leia também: Sandboard no Peru: Não apenas Huacachina

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