The president of Chapecoense, Paulo Magro, dies from COVID-19

The president of Chapecoense, Paulo Magro, died at the age of 59 from COVID-19, the Brazilian soccer club that attracted worldwide solidarity four years ago when a plane crash in Colombia killed most of its team, reported.

Magro was admitted to an intensive care unit of a hospital in the city of Chapecó (southern Brazil) since December 18 due to complications in his health caused by the coronavirus.

The leader has been presiding over Chapecoense since August 2019 and, despite holding the position for exactly one year, when the team lost its place in the first division of the Brazilian Championship, his death occurred precisely at a time when the club leads the rankings of the second division tournament and is a few points away from confirming its return to the elite group.

"Completely devastated and with our hearts filled with sadness and disbelief", announced Chapecoense the death of their president in a statement in which they attributed to Magro the current resurgence of the club both on and off the field.

"With his courage, ability, and wisdom, he allowed the white and green team to return to the path of victory", according to the Chapecoense team, who expressed their gratitude "to the man who entered our history and immortalized it by rebuilding it once again".

The accident that decimated Chapecoense occurred on November 28, 2016, when the plane in which the team was traveling to Medellin to play the final of the Copa Sudamericana crashed 17 kilometers from the airport of the Colombian city.

Thank you very much, Paulo. Forever President. 💚

Chapecoense (@ChapecoenseReal) December 30, 2020

In the tragedy, 71 out of the 77 people on board the Lamia Bolivia airline aircraft died, including players, members of the board of directors, coaching staff, and about twenty journalists who accompanied the club in their first final in an international tournament.

Following the event, Chapecoense was declared the champion of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana and debuted in the Copa Libertadores de America (the top continental tournament) in 2018.

The team, which until 2006 played in the fourth division of Brazil, spent six years in the first division of the league before their first relegation in December of last year.

The Covid-19 also caused the death this month of former player and coach René Weber, who led the Brazilian Under-20 team and this year was an assistant coach for Botafogo, and Marcelo Veiga, coach of the modest club Sao Bernardo and who was the strategist with the most matches coached for Bragantino.

Among the still active personalities in Brazilian football who have died from the pandemic, the standout is the masseur Jorge Luiz Domingos 'Jorginho', who worked with Flamengo for nearly four decades, the Brazilian champion and Libertadores champion in 2019, and who was also a masseur for the Brazilian national team that won the 2002 World Cup.

Also, the deaths of José Raymundo, the doctor for the Brasil de Pelotas club; Marcos Bosin, former vice-president of Gremio; Sebastiao José da Silva, youth division coach responsible for discovering gems like striker Richarlison; and André Karnikowski, former president and doctor of the Brusque club.

Brazil is one of the global epicenters of the pandemic and the second country with the most deaths from COVID-19 in the world, with nearly 194,000 deaths, and the third with the most cases, with over 7.6 million confirmed cases. EFE

Our stars, side by side, guiding our mission to maintain and honor two great legacies. 💚🌟

📷 Márcio Cunha I ACF#PraSempreChape #PraSempreLembrados

Chapecoense (@ChapecoenseReal) December 31, 2020