By Luis De Jesus
Aug 30, 2024, 10:58 PM EDT
Javier Acosta, a 36-year-old Colombian and fervent fan of the Millonarios team, was euthanized this Friday after a long battle with a serious illness.
A few years ago, a traffic accident left him in a wheelchair and recently his condition worsened beyond recovery.
Acosta’s story and the video he recorded before his death moved Colombia, sparking a wave of solidarity, Efe news agency reported.
Dozens of fans and hooligans of the capital team gathered at the doors of the San Ignacio hospital in Bogotá to say goodbye and accompany him in his final moments.
“I am Javier Acosta, a Millonarios fan. Yesterday I made an important decision for my life and today I say goodbye to friends and family. Long live life, crazy people!” he posted on his social media.
Nine years ago, Acosta was left in a wheelchair after a traffic accident.
He later contracted a bacteria in a swimming pool that caused a serious bone infection, which led to blood cancer, he told Noticias Caracol.
In recent days, doctors told him that there was no possible treatment.
“Friends, there will be no miracle, there is no other chance,” he explained in a video with evident sadness.
After five years of fighting, the treatments were ineffective and the cancer spread to her head.
Unable to walk and facing the prospect of a life in hospital, Acosta decided to opt for euthanasia, which is legal in Colombia for cases of terminal, serious or incurable illness.
“Life is over and I’m doing this ‘live’ to say goodbye to everyone because later I won’t have the strength to tell them. It’s not easy to have an infection like this,” he said in one of his last videos.
Even Radamel Falcao García took an interest in his case, calling him when he was at the clinic and promising to dedicate to him the first goal he scored with the Bogotá team’s jersey, which he joined this semester.
A touching gesture of solidarity from the young football fans.
They remind us that all Colombians are children of the revolutionary slogan that waves around the world: “Freedom, equality and solidarity.” https://t.co/JsQt2D7x8q
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) August 30, 2024
Continue reading:
• The couple who died from double euthanasia after 70 years of marriage
• “I deserve a death with dignity”: the story of Paola Roldán, the woman who achieved the decriminalization of euthanasia in Ecuador
• Legislation gaining ground in NY that would allow terminally ill patients to receive medical aid in dying