About us

The Ricky Rubio Foundation’s
areas of focus

Lung Cancer

OUR FIGHT

Increase lung cancer awarness through digital campaigns. Support our allies’ fundraising campaigns”.

Underprivileged Youth

OUR FIGHT

Youth support in vulnerable neighborhoods in Catalonia and Salt Lake City through valued based afterschool basketball programs.

Disabled Youth

OUR FIGHT

We support special Olympics’ Unified Basketball, a basket program where teams are composed of people with and without intellectual disabilities.

History

Since I started playing basketball, I have always thought about how to leverage professional sports to help others and how to have an impact on the greater community.

I had always tossed around the idea of starting a foundation until the decision to act became clear. My mother was diagnosed with lung cancer in the summer of 2012. The following four years were some of my hardest. In one of my last conversations with my mom, I promised her that I would do everything in my power to help others.

Vulnerable children and youth is one of my focuses since I feel strongly about helping them grow and integrate into society in a healthy manner. The other objective of my foundation is the fight against lung cancer in terms of both awareness and prevention.

Global money raised
& what we have achieved

  • Initiate the procedures to attract sponsors and collaborators to accomplish our objectives.
  • Extensive media participation over the world loung cancer day (November 17, 2018) with an emition of a video related to this disease with the collaboration of Ricky Rubio, the writer Eduardo Mendoza and Dr. Santiago Viteri, specialist and researcher.
  • Developpement of a comfort room for patients and relatives together with the Instituto Oncológico Rossell inside the Quiron Hospital.
  • Famlily trip to New York for the child Luca de la Vega (12 years old, Mataró), who suffers from aggressive cancer. TRRF invited them to the NBA game Nknicks-Utah where he lived an unforgettable experience.
  • Development of the Community Team program with the Assossiació Esportiva Ciutat Vella in Raval (Barcelona) in favor of 300 boys and girls who, in addition to being able to play basketball with the help of the social services of the Barcelona City Council, have received from TRRF material in the form of uniforms and a process for implementing the Skills for Life promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO). This double way of non-formal education and sport is carried out through the specific training of coaches so that they have sufficient psyco-pedagogical resources and tools.

2020 Challenges
of the Foundation

  • Raise awareness to the community about lung cancer, a lethal and silent disease that is very difficult to diagnose until it is advanced. Prevent it early with social difusion, good advices, investigation and support to patients and their families.
  • Through basketball we will contribute to the integration and socialization of adolescents and young people without resources for extracurricular activities.
  • Give visibility and support to Special Olympics as an international ambassador.

Ricky Rubio

Founder

NBA professional basketball player

Josep Cortada

Trustee

CEO in Advance Inspiring Social Innovation

Testimonials

Dr. Santiago Viteri

Dr. Santiago Viteri

Researcher at Instituto Oncológico Rosell

"The most important and effective treatment is prevention and to detect cancer as early as possible. Lung cancer is a type of cancer that does not have clear symptoms and it is complicated to fight once has spread. It is clear what is the first step to take: Do not smoke. We cannot assure that a smoker will suffer lung cancer but we can say that the majority of the cases of lung cancer are from people who smoke. We do not need technology to help to avoid lung cancer, we just need to keep away from tobacco,” said Dr. Santiago Viteri researcher at The Instituto Oncologico Rossell in the Universitari Dexeus Hospital. Last year more than 28,000 new cases were diagnosed with lung cancer."

Laia

Laia

Community Team Coach

"It has been a different and a pleasant experience to have Ricky Rubio as an ambassador to our activities during the whole school year. Despite the fact that Ricky is far away in Utah, we have felt him really close to us thanks to his constant messages and his team always by our side. Today, our children from Associacio Esportiva Ciutat Vella are wearing your t-shirt with pride, passion and respect. All the people involved in this project feel that sport is a necessity to educate children socially. For the little ones it is the best way to prepare them for real life. Thanks to basketball they are learning how to navigate through life, how to make their own decisions and most importantly how to make decisions knowing that they will have consequences not only individually but on their team, family and school.”

Testimonials

Dr. Santiago Viteri

Dr. Santiago Viteri

Researcher at Instituto Oncológico Rosell

"The most important and effective treatment is prevention and to detect cancer as early as possible. Lung cancer is a type of cancer that does not have clear symptoms and it is complicated to fight once has spread. It is clear what is the first step to take: Do not smoke. We cannot assure that a smoker will suffer lung cancer but we can say that the majority of the cases of lung cancer are from people who smoke. We do not need technology to help to avoid lung cancer, we just need to keep away from tobacco,” said Dr. Santiago Viteri researcher at The Instituto Oncologico Rossell in the Universitari Dexeus Hospital. Last year more than 28,000 new cases were diagnosed with lung cancer."

Laia

Laia

Community Team Coach

"It has been a different and a pleasant experience to have Ricky Rubio as an ambassador to our activities during the whole school year. Despite the fact that Ricky is far away in Utah, we have felt him really close to us thanks to his constant messages and his team always by our side. Today, our children from Associacio Esportiva Ciutat Vella are wearing your t-shirt with pride, passion and respect. All the people involved in this project feel that sport is a necessity to educate children socially. For the little ones it is the best way to prepare them for real life. Thanks to basketball they are learning how to navigate through life, how to make their own decisions and most importantly how to make decisions knowing that they will have consequences not only individually but on their team, family and school.”

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