This is a never ending problem. The lack of financial support for athletes and delegations the participation of a Colombian team in an international commitment puts the suspense again.
(Do not stop reading: María Isabel Urrutia would have signed contracts before leaving Mindeporte)
Despite the fact that since November of last year, from the Colombian Association of Transplanted Athletes –acodet– They began to knock on the doors of the Ministry of Sports to finance the trip of the national team to World Cup for Transplanted Athletes, to be held in Perth, Australiafrom April 15 to 21, at least one appointment was never made to discuss the issue.
(Also read: María I. Urrutia: silence due to complaint of ‘signing’ of contracts, details)
(Also read: María Isabel Urrutia: “I don’t know if Petro declared me ineffective or changed me”)
The letters that were sent to the office of the today ex-minister were reiterated Maria Isabel Urrutiawhich never had an echo, especially now, after the surprise departure of the official and the arrival of the new minister astrid rodriguezappointed on February 28.
So he made it known Alejandra Martín, co-founder and director of Acodetwho also expressed his deep concern for the current situation of the 16 athletes who won their place after competing in the First National Games for Transplant Patientslast year in Santa Marta, and the other representatives of the national delegation, which received an invitation from the organization of the world jousts.
In January, already with concern, we again sent a statement to the President, making the situation clear and then, the President wrote to Urrutia asking him to listen to us…
“The doors of the National Government have been knocked on. In November, a communication was sent to the Minister, at her time, María Isabel Urrutia. However, no response was received. Then we sent a formal request to President Petro, who replied that he had sent the request to the Minister, since that is the regular channel. Despite this request, no response was received from the ministry. In January, already with concern, we sent a statement to the President again, making the situation clear and then, the President wrote to Urrutia asking him to listen to us, but still, we never had an answer”, the director of Acodet, who is a doctor with a master’s degree in Clinical Epidemiology and has extensive experience related to transplant services, told EL TIEMPO.
(We recommend reading: Ministry of Sports: from bad to worse… (Meluk tells you))
Finally, two Ministry officials had a rapprochement in February. Both the Director of Promotion and the Director of Positioning listened to the concerns related to the displacement of the delegation to Australian territory, but in the end they reiterated that the only way was to find an appointment to talk with the Minister.
Subsequently, Martín recounts, they spoke with the Minister’s adviser and an appointment was made for February 25, despite the fact that no response had yet been received to the request that had been made in November and no response was known to the president. Petro for the request that he himself made.
However, a week before the appointment, the communications department reported that the appointment was not possible and had to be canceled due to the Minister’s schedule, for which reason it was postponed to The 8th of Marchbut due to the departure of the head of the portfolio, the appointment was never made.
(You may be interested in: María Isabel Urrutia: 5 deadly sins in 6 months of management in Mindeporte)
On-Air Participation
“A few days ago I received a statement from the Ministry in which they basically congratulate me for what we do and invite us to join the current federations and that they will continue working for the benefit of the public health in Colombia. They tell us that we are great allies, great proponents of public health, and they invite us to continue like this. But in view of this response, I once again turn to the Ministry and make them see that the response does not correspond to the request that was made in November and I tell them that they are not citing the reason why we came to them. It is basically what has happened”, underlines Martín.
However, and despite the adversity, the director of Acodet believes that it is possible that the 16 Colombian transplant athletes come to Australia. “We are waiting for the connection and the possession of the new Minister, to see if she can listen to us and can help us because it is really not easy to get to the World Cup headquarters,” she pointed out.
At the same time, the preparation of Colombian athletes continues its march. They, on their own, remain in preparation, despite the obstacle that has always been having financial resources, especially if one takes into account that sports for transplant patients are not found in the sports system.
The sports structure of the country includes conventional, physically disabled or Paralympic or Olympic athletes, but transplanted athletes are not included in any of these categories.
(We recommend reading: María Isabel Urrutia did not make the minimum mark… (Meluk tells her, opinion))
“Beyond the medals that we have won in different competitions, I think that this medal that is not seen, which is the public health of Colombians, is the best we can have and hang ourselves with all the pride. What we have done is impact the public health of all transplant recipients and above all, in patients who are on the waiting list, because if they remain active, adherence after the transplant will be much better”, Martín points out.
The World Cup for Transplanted Athletes is a multi-sport event in which athletes from various countries around the world who have had a successful organ transplant participate, and organized by the World Transplant Federation (WTGF), with the endorsement and sponsorship of the International Olympic Committee -IOC- and its primary objective is to increase awareness worldwide of the importance of organ donation.
(You may like this story: What it’s like to be on the verge of death and then to be a track champion)
“We are one step away and the dream is getting out of hand. It would be very sad and disappointing not to attend that sporting event that is so important for us”, concludes Alejandra Martín, who hopes that her requests will be heard by the new Minister and finally the team can attend the World Cup in Perth.
JAVIER ARANA
ELTIEMPO.COM
On Twitter: @arana_javier
#Colombia #left #World #Cup #Transplanted #Athletes