Rubio honors late mother with cancer patient visiting room at Barcelona hospital

BARCELONA (Spain) - After remarkable on-court performances at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China, the tournament's TISSOT MVP Ricky Rubio of Spain is also making an impact away from the court. 

The 28-year-old player has unveiled a room at Barcelona's Dexeus University Hospital where cancer patients can spend time with family and friends.

The room has has undergone a makeover, which was paid for by The Ricky Rubio Foundation, and is divided into different zones: relaxation, reading and wellness.

The room at Barcelona's Dexeus University Hospital (Photo: The Ricky Rubio Foundation)

The Barcelona-born Rubio dedicated his performance in China to his late mother, Tona Vives,  who suffered from lung cancer and died three years ago at the age of 56.

He said of the room: "This is a dream come true and much bigger than winning a World Cup. My mother had radiotherapy in the U.S. There are many memories that marked me.

"There are little things that a hospital can do to help make patients happy. I spent many hours in this room with my mother and I couldn't recognize it today. It doesn't look like a hospital waiting room. Not everything can be bad news for patients in bad rooms. If you can have some distraction for a few minutes, all the better. My mother would have been prouder to see me unveil this room than to have won the World Cup."

The room launched by the Ricky Foundation is named after Javier Claver, the father of Rubio's Spain teammate and friend, Victor Claver, who lost his father to cancer in 2011. It is also known as "Urban Oasis".

"Ricky was the MVP of the World Cup, but he is also an MVP for launching these initiatives," Victor Claver said. "My family and I are grateful for his gesture of naming the room after my father. He is an example of how you can transcend beyond than the hardwood."

FIBA