OLYMPIC gold medal-winning high-jumper Ruth Beitia has been named ambassador for two of Cantabria's most typical sweet treats, the sobao pasiego and the quesada.
The first is a moist spongecake which comes in small individual fingers, and the second (pictured below right) is a type of egg custard, a denser version of the national dessert, the flan, or crème caramel.
Both are widely consumed at Easter in the northern coastal region.
And Ruth admits she always takes a stash of the two of them with her whenever she travels abroad for competitions.
Ruth, whose record is unparalleled in Spain for her sport and who netted one of her country's earliest gold medals in Rio 2016 when she was aged 37, was given a medal by the Cantabria sobao pasiego association and a diploma by Vega de Pas town hall naming her as ambassador for the two desserts during the local Easter craft and food fair.
Here, she was surrounded by crowds of girls and young women in traditional costume, who flocked to the fair to meet their local sporting heroine.
Born in and still living in Cantabria, Ruth has put her region firmly on the map with her international successes, although she is not expecting to be able to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, since she will be 41 by then and pushing retirement.
