Ker govt declares two-day mourning in sports sector for Maradona; appeals to people to join

A day after Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona died of heart attack in Buenos Aires, the Kerala government on Thursday announced a two-day mourning in the state's sports sector and appealed to everyone in the fraternity to join as a mark of tribute. Considered the greatest footballer of all time alongside Brazil's Pele, the Argentine player had a great fan following in the football crazy southern state.

As soon as the news of his demise broke, shock and disbelief gripped hardcore football fans in the state especially in Malappuram, which is popularly known as the Mecca of Kerala football, who flooded social media platforms with his photos, WhatsApp status and videos. Announcing the mourning, state sports minister E P Jayarajan said the departure of Maradona has saddened football fans around the world.

"In Kerala also, lakhs of fans could not believe his departure," he said. Under these circumstances, the state sports department decided to observe a two-day mourning from Thursday, the minister said and urged the entire sports fraternity to join in.

The Sports Minister's office later clarified that it was the Sports Department's appeal to the people in the state, especially sports-lovers and those in the fraternity, to mourn the legendary footballer's death. "There is no cancellation of any event or anything like that as part of the mourning announced in the sports sector. It is just an appeal to the general public, sports buffs and those in the sports fraternity to mourn the death of the legendary footballer," a staff in the minister's office told P T I.

However, no sporting events are scheduled due to COVID-19, he added. Maradona died following a cardiac arrestat his home in Buenos Aires,two weeks after undergoing a surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain.

The iconic footballer had come to the southern state for two days in October 2012 on a private event. For the football fans of the region, it was a god- sent opportunity as they could catch a glimpse of their hero from close quarters in Kannur.

Such was the craze for the 1986 World Cup winner that fans had started converging at the stadium three days prior to the event. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also expressed grief on Wednesday over the death of Maradona and said his fans around the world would miss the football legend.PTI LGK ROH SS PTI PTI

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)