Benidorm commemorates with a gala the 65th anniversary of the bikini in Spain

Last night, the Bikini Tribute Gala took place in Benidorm Palace, on its 65th anniversary since its use was authorized for the first time in Spain, precisely on the beaches of this Mediterranean city. The event has also served to present the finalists of the National Fashion Design Award for Swimwear New Fashion Talents Spain 2018.

The mayor of Benidorm, Toni Pérez, who also holds the delegation of the area of ​​Tourism, attended the gala along with representatives of the different municipal groups. In the act were also, among others, the senator for Alicante, Agustín Almodóbar, the director of Moda España, Carmen Torres and relatives of the deceased mayor of the city and forerunner of  Benidorm that we all know today, Pedro Zaragoza.

The gala was presented by the fashion designer Cristina Rodríguez and the actor and speaker Miguel Ángel Fernández and designs by the School of Art Superior of Design of Alcoi and the Superior Design Center of Madrid were shown, besides, the new proposals of the firm of Vila-real (Castellón), Dolores Cortés, which was represented by the designer Dolores Cortés, daughter.

In his speech, Toni Pérez recalled and thanked "the effort of those people who, almost seven decades ago, had the courage to turn Benidorm into the city it is today and the reference it is from the point of view of tourism." The mayor referred that "at that time" with initiatives such as the first use of the bikini on its beaches, "Benidorm became a window to Europe and the world."

The organization of the ceremony honored Pedro Zaragoza giving his sons Pedro and Quico Zaragoza a memory of the gala by Toni Pérez. It has also been remembered the first Spanish actress who posed in a bikini in Spain, Beatriz Ledesma, photographed in 1955 in Benidorm, the city where she now resides. The Councilor for Citizen Participation, Mª Jesús Pinto, gave her a remembrance of the event. Another of the anecdotes of the evening was carried out by the members of the Self-Help Group for Women with Breast Cancer in Benidorm (Anemone), who worked as hostesses, wearing their traditional pink vindication handkerchief.

In the gala, finally, the 13 selected designers, from among 256 aspirants, who will compete in the first National Fashion Award for Swimwear New Talents that will be held in June and which will take place at the Castle of Benidorm, have been presented.