Friday, 31 October 2025, 11:07
Princess Leonor read out personalised messages to each Princesa de Asturias award winner during last Friday’s ceremony at Teatro Campoamor in Oviedo. She said that, in this day and age of short attention spans and constant digital distractions, she hoped the audience would stay focused during her lengthy, personalised tributes.
The 19-year-old, who turns 20 today (31 October), identified herself as “Generation Z, daughter of an X and a boomer”, drawing laughter from her parents.
She told the Premio Princesa de Asturias for Communication and Humanities award winner, philosopher Byung-Chul Han, that young people relate to “that emoji where the character’s brain explodes”, while advocating for “back to basics”.
To Mario Draghi, who won the award for International cooperation, she recalled his 2012 promise to do “whatever it takes” to save the euro. Tennis champion Serena Williams (winner for Sports) was praised for transforming the sport and demonstrating that “greatness isn’t always winning, but the capacity to get up and keep going.”
Scientist Mary-Claire King, absent due to illness, was recognised with the prize for Scientific and Technical Research for identifying breast cancer genes and helping reunite families separated by Argentina’s dictatorship.
Writer Eduardo Mendoza (Literature) received praise for terms like “chafarriñón” (big stain), with Leonor joking, “I can’t imagine how the interpreters are managing.”