Virginia Torrecillaplayer of Atletico Madridhas received an award of ‘The watchman‘ to footballer of the year 2022. An award given by the English publication “to a player who has done something remarkable, be it overcoming adversity, helping others or setting an example in sports by acting with exceptional honesty.”
Virginia herself remembers what she had to go through when they found a tumor and when, after a full recovery, she was in a traffic accident with her mother Mari, who ended up in a wheelchair.
“I sank. I’ve been through cancer 15 times. 15, huh. I will do 30 chemotherapies so mom can walk again. Promise, promise. With all my heart. Three years on chemotherapy. five! I don’t care, if only he can get up. I blamed myself. He said I can’t think like that. She is my mother, she will always protect me. But, no, no. What my mother went through…”, she pointed out while crying.
There, Virginia thought of leaving everything behind. But his parents quickly put that idea out of his mind. And six months later, he returned to play at Atlético de Madrid. “When people say I’m a fighter, an example, it’s fascinating ”, He says. “But the pain I felt: it’s not the cancer in my body, it’s everything I overcome psychologically, everything I went through with my mom. That’s hard, honestly. Very, very, very difficult.”
“I had the support of Atlético: otherwise I wouldn’t be here. People cannot enter hospitals. My uncle died five months later because he could not get treatment. He died of prostate cancer. No funeral”, said Virginia, to talk later on the day he played again, in the Spanish Super Cup against FC Barcelona. “I got up, I left with my mask and my coat. I ran back to the bench, leaving there, the mask and the coat. No shin guards. The mess. I’m super nervous. He hasn’t been able to play for two years and he barely remembers what to do. I was desperate to get out, so people could see me. I want people to see that I beat cancer and they can too”.
A wish for 2023
“I’m happy to have overcome a tumor and to be able to give a voice to those who fight. Life has made me understand things that I didn’t understand before,” said the Atlético de Madrid football player, ending by saying “I dream of seeing my mom here, my dad by her side, watching me play soccer after everything we’ve been through.. And now we’re on the road.”
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
