An air accident resulted in 71 deaths, including 19 players from the Chapecoense club. Three players, a journalist, and two crew members survived the tragic event. The Brazilian team was posthumously declared champion of a tournament in South America.
Sports have been marked by tragedies throughout history. One of the most remembered accidents was suffered by the U.S. figure skating team in 1961 when a flight crashed near Brussels. In another unfortunate incident, members of the Boston Skating Club lost their lives in a plane crash in Washington in 2021.
Other disasters have claimed the lives of prominent athletes such as basketball player Kobe Bryant, who died in a crash in California in 2020. Tragedies like that of Manchester United in 1958 have also moved the world, with the loss of players and coaching staff in a plane crash in Munich.
Among the accidents that have struck sports is the one suffered by Chapecoense in 2016, when a plane carrying the team crashed in Colombia. Additionally, cases such as the Uruguayan rugby club in 1972, the U.S. boxing team in 1980, and the Zambian football team in 1993 have left a tragic toll of lost lives.
It is important to remember these air tragedies to pay tribute to the victims and reflect on the fragility of life, as well as to highlight the courage of the survivors who managed to move forward despite adverse circumstances. Air accidents in the sports realm are a painful reality that has marked the history of different disciplines.
