Bitter news for Colombian soccer is received with the The most recent medical part of former Colombian soccer player Freddy Rincón, who suffered a traffic accident at dawn on Monday while traveling in a van with two other passengers. The colossus of Buenaventura, as he was affectionately known, died this Wednesday.
As announced by the medical chief of the clinic, Laureano Quintero, “despite all the efforts” of the work teams, “Freddy Eusebio Rincón Valencia has passed away.” “We want to express our sincere condolences to his family, his friends, his relatives and his followers around the world. There will never be a way to express how it feels to lose one of our patients, whoever that patient is,” Quintero said.
The doctor asked to honor the life of Freddy Rincón, who was one of the most outstanding players of the golden generation of the 90s. His two goals in the unforgettable 5-0 against Argentina (1993) were added to the historic goal of 19 June 1990 against West Germany, which took Colombia to the round of 16 of the World Cup, after the National Team was 28 years out of the most important soccer tournament. In addition, he was the first Colombian soccer player to play for Real Madrid.
Medical procedure
After suffering a severe head injury, Rincón was admitted in critical condition to a surgery that lasted two hours and 45 minutes. After the procedure, the former National Team player entered a Intensive Care Unit of the same clinicwhere he remained from Monday afternoon.
Although at all times it was maintained that the prognosis was reserved, doctor Quintero, who has been a spokesperson for the case, did specify in each report that his condition was “very critical”.
In fact, in statements on Tuesday morning, after rumors of a possible brain death, Quintero said: “His prognosis has not changed for the time being, considering the delicate evolution that has been presenting”. Later, in the afternoon medical part, he added that the specialists had decided to do “some additional studies on his brain to determine the steps to follow.”
Finally, it was on Wednesday morning when doctor Quintero reduced the signs of hope by insisting that Rincón’s condition was still “extremely critical.” “It must be clear, I repeat, that the evolution is not favourable”concluded after specifying that the follow-ups, diagnostic tests, radiological studies and the clinical condition had not shown improvements.
The accident
The event that started the tragic accident was evasion of a red light by the van that Rincón was in. This was evidenced by the security cameras located on Calle 5 with Carrera 34, near the Pascual Guerrero stadium, which showed how at around 4:30 in the morning, the private vehicle with UGR-410 license plates collided with a feeder bus from the MIO that was destroyed in its front part.
The Ford 4×4 did not belong to the former soccer player. However, the mayor of Cali, Jorge Iván Ospina, revealed that he had not paid the Soat and had reports of traffic violations in the database of the Ministry of Mobility. “The Mayor’s Office of Cali transfers all this material to the Attorney General’s Office so that the pertinent investigation can be carried out,” said Ospina, who specified that it is still unknown who was driving the truck.
About the driver of the public transport bus, it was learned that he was about to start his work for the day. The man, identified as Jorge Eduardo Muñoz, was alone in the vehicle when the crash occurred that left him a fracture of the tibia and knee of the left leg, for which he will have to undergo surgery surgically. Likewise, it was possible to rule out that he was under the influence of alcohol.
The two women who were with the former soccer player in the truck are María Manuela Patiño, 20, and Lorena Cortés, 43. They also underwent a breathalyzer test, which was negative.
