The Aquinas Bears represent the school in all sports competitions. They demonstrate the nobility and strength of the bear, which is a historical symbol of Madrid.

Madrid has been associated with the bear from as early as the Middle Ages, most likely because of the abundance of the animal in the area. There are historical writings that document the use of the bear (on all fours) as a symbol on king Alfonso VIII’s flag during his military expedition against the taifa of Murcia in 1211 and in the battle of the Navas of Tolosa in 1212.

Madrid’s current shield, the bear and the madroño tree, was approved in 1967 after centuries of evolution.