The path of life is full of broken illusions and the hope of joy after suffering. Tobias Duarte He is 96 years old and is a fan of the Atlético Bucaramanga since the birth of the team 75 years ago and has never been able to shout: “Champions!”
The history
Bucaramanga is the only one of the traditional Colombian soccer teams that has not won a star. Tobías, however, is a living example of having faith in a love that has brought more sadness than triumphs.
The eastern stand of the Alfonso López stadium has seen the hopes of the Duarte family extinguished in the missed goals in the decisive matches, in the scores received for the eliminations and the idols who, decade after decade, wore yellow uniforms – yellow, like the leopard of his shield – and that brought ephemeral, incomplete joys.
But today, as before, as always, Tobías goes to the stadium, with his son Nilson, now 41 years old, and with his grandson Juan, 11, with the same faith as always, believing that now, with Rafael Dudamel as coach, and Aldair Quintana, Fredy Hinestroza, Fabián Sambueza and company are going to be, finally, champions.
The three generations of the Duarte family go to the stadium to support Bucaramanga, together
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Last April, that dream of the first Olympic round appeared again: since the implementation of the short tournaments in the League, Bucaramanga had never finished first in the ‘all against all’ phase.
The Atlético Bucaramanga players took to the field in the match against Junior with a banner that said “Let’s dream together”
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Today, after five dates in which the team has five points, it continues to enjoy the love of a fan who dreams of a miracle that will take them to the final. Beat Pereira and Millonarios beat Junior.
“My dad paid three and five pesos a ticket. All his life he has lived in the San Alonso neighborhood, near the ‘Coloso de la 30’ (the Alfonso López stadium),” says Nilson.
The last classification to a final
Tobías’s mind has blurred memories of great figures of the club. “I met all the Argentines when they arrived at Bucaramanga, I even played pool with one of them,” he says while trying to remember the names of Roberto Frascuellior the biggest idol of the club, José Américo the ‘Embroiderer’ Montanini. In addition, memories of another great one come to him Germán, ‘Cuca’ AceroI’m the scorer Orlando Ballesteros.
Tobías Duarte and the legend of the leopard club: Jose Américo Montanini
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“The goal I remember most is Ballesteros’s in Armenia, that drove the entire city crazy,” adds Nilson, while his father tries to continue naming players. In 1997, Bucaramanga was playing for a place in the final of the local tournament and its qualification for the Copa Libertadores as a visitor with the Quindío. With an agonizing goal from ‘Ghost’ Ballesteros The game that qualified Bucaramanga was tied, which then lost the title to América.
This season a miracle like the one in 97′ is needed for Alfonso López to host a final and the dream of the title. Bucaramanga must beat Pereira and Millonarios do the same with Junior. If these results occur, the four teams would be left with eight points and the qualifier would be Bucaramanga due to the sporting advantage.
The recurring dream of the illusion of the star
“Our dream as fans and the prize in life, as my dad says, is to see the champion Leopard. We hope that, that day that we hope to be now, in the 91st minute of the final of this League, there will be a huge hug and tears between my father, his grandson and I, while we are kneeling in the ‘colossus’: It is the cry! dreamed!”, he said.
The Alfonso López Stadium in a sunset
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Thousands of Santander residents have left without seeing their Bucaramanga champion, but today all of them are present, the fans who look at the sky and ask: ‘I want to be champion.’
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