Having passed away at the age of 68, he accidentally became the protagonist of one of the most iconic photos in the history of football, symbol of the Albiceleste’s victory in the World Cup
Roberto Cejas became famous thanks to a photo. He is the lucky Argentine fan who carried Maradona on his shoulders immediately after the final triumph against West Germany at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. He walked around the pitch of the Azteca stadium with the Pibe de Oro showing the world the trophy he had just won. The man, originally from Santa Fe, died Monday at the age of 68 after a long illness. His sister-in-law Silvia Zabala announced it on social media: “Fly high. Rest in peace and take care of all of us from there.” And to think that Roberto never even had a ticket for that historic challenge. “I had promised my colleagues that I would leave for Mexico City only if Argentina had won the semi-final against Belgium – he said a few years later -. It happened and I did it. With a group of friends we paid 17 dollars to a steward, he let us in”.
Accidental hero
—
Argentina’s 3-2 against West Germany allowed Bilardo’s group to win their second World Cup. Maradona didn’t find the net in the final, but the amazing double he scored against England in the quarter-finals was still in everyone’s eyes. “At the final whistle I jumped over the ditch and ran onto the pitch. I don’t know how, I found myself next to Diego – said Cejas -. It was he who asked me to take him on my shoulders. At a certain point I only saw the photographers, he had the trophy in his hands. We walked around the pitch, I was living a dream”. Roberto Cejas’ life changed on June 29, 1986. The fan even managed to ask the Pibe de Oro for the boots from that match, but Diego replied: “I can’t, I have to take them to my mother.”
The special hug
—
Cejas remained very close to Maradona. She met him in 2014, almost thirty years after the shared party at the Azteca stadium. At that time Diego hosted a television program together with Víctor Hugo Morales. The two hugged, remembering that afternoon in Mexico City: “He told me ‘I know how much the World Cup weighs, you know how much Maradona weighs holding the most beautiful trophy in his hand’. It was emotional.” When Roberto was asked what the Pibe de Oro meant to him he replied confidently: “It is a very important part of Argentina’s history. It opened the doors of the world to us. If I could I would tell him one last time: ‘I raised you and you took me to eternity'”.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED