Valencia

Valencia, Spain's third city and capital of the Turia, was the European Capital of Sport 2011. ACES rewarded its intense sporting life at every level: more than a hundred municipal sports facilities and a dense network of civic practice, together with an international calendar that had made it a reference. The city had been hosting major events at its most emblematic spaces — the Marina, venue of the America's Cup sailing, and the City of Arts and Sciences — and staged international circuit events such as the Open 500 tennis tournament. The title was embedded in a Strategic Sport Plan designed to join forces and shape integrated sports policies, avoiding isolated measures and projecting the city nationally and internationally.