Mourning is around millions of people in the world, including journalists, sports journalists and athletes; it will never be easy to say goodbye to our friends and colleagues, much less in a situation like the one we are currently living in, in which we literally cannot say goodbye.
From AIPS, we stand in solidarity with the families of athletes and our colleagues, whether or not they are from the sport field, they are our colleagues.
On the other hand, the organizers of sporting events continue to report changes in dates to comply with both national and international calendars.
CONMEBOL
President Alejandro Domínguez said that all necessary precautions have been taken so that when football returns to the field, “we are all to enjoy football as it should be – all together!”
“With the house in order and solid finances we will be able to confront these exceptional circumstances with confidence and with the necessary response capacity, both financially and institutionally,” added President Domínguez.
It should be remembered that a few days ago, CONMEBOL made available up to USD $65 million, so the clubs that participate in its tournaments (Copa Libertadores and Copa Suramericana) can have an advance of up to 60% of their participation rights.
“As leaders, we must take care of football, be aware of its importance, of the sources of work it generates, not only for football players but for everything around them. That is why we must be responsible in decision-making, to protect football and to minimize, as far as possible, the social and economic impact of this situation.
“The situation is critical and we should not underestimate it. For now, it is a battle in which we must play at home, staying at home to stop this virus,” said the president.
MEXICO
The National Games that were scheduled to be held in May have been cancelled. The Mexican Professional Baseball League hopes to start its season on October 12th, “We are checking the evolution of the battle against the Coronavirus worldwide, but we will still go on with the opening date agreed at the end of 2019”.
UNITED STATES
Maria Mercader was a renowned journalist for CBS News, who died in New York at the age of 54 after falling ill with Coronavirus. The American journalist who was fighting cancer for more than 20 years, tested positive for Coronavirus and her body, which was more vulnerable by the treatments received, could not resist the virus. While at CBS News, she actively participated in the coordination of news unit at the Association of Asian, American Journalists, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Association of Lesbian and Gay Journalists. Among her most important works are, the production on breaking news coverage such as the death of Princess Diana and the September 11 attack, in 2004. In addition, she received the Emmy Award for business news for her work on an Informatics’ Spam. Regarding sports news, another multisport event has announced new dates due to the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The 11th edition of the World Games, Birmingham, United States will now be held from 7th to 17th July 2022, as agreed by the International World Games Association and the Birmingham Organizing Committee. The games were originally planned from July 15th to 25th 2021.
COLOMBIA
Colombian Sports Journalism is in mourning after Guillermo Tribín Piedrahíta died because of the COVID19 in Spain, where he was living. In his long and brilliant journalistic career, he was Director of Sports for the newspaper El Siglo, Director of the Information Services of Radio Cadena Nacional and Circuito Todelar de Colombia, International Editor of United Press International, Director of the EFE Agency in Colombia and Writer and Head Editor of the EFE Agency in Spain.
ECUADOR
In Ecuador the deaths of four journalists have been registered, two of them dedicated their careers to sports. Manuel Adolfo Varas worked as a sports announcer and journalist. He was born in Guayaquil on April 2, 1943. During 56 years of journalistic activity, he gained the affection of the people because of his jocularity. As an announcer he began his career on Radio América. Gerardo Mosquera passed away due to a cardiovascular problem. Gerardo was the General Manager of Radio Viva 91.9 FM, in which many young reporters had the opportunity to have their first experience on radio, making him also a journalist trainer. He was passionate about, sports and that passion led him to dedicate himself to sports journalism. People started to know him while working in Radio Voz del Trópico. His death was not related to Covid-19.
Source: María Constanza Mora Pedraza| AIPS Member
www.sports24ghana.com
