La Paz – The Bolivia National Team was the victim of a prolonged and arbitrary retention in Maturín, Venezuela, after playing its match for the World Cup qualifiers. After more than 12 hours of waiting, the Venezuelan airport authorities finally authorized the take -off of the charter flightin the midst of a growing controversy and diplomatic claims.
The regime of Nicolás Maduro initially prevented the exit of the plane that had to move to the Delegation back to La Paz, although they had all the required documentation.
Forced to leave the airport in the early morning, players, coaching staff and logistics staff returned without explanations to their hotel, which generated a wave of indignation both in Bolivia and internationally. The Bolivian Football Federation confirmed that the flight never received the necessary authorization to take off.
The technical director of the team, Oscar Villegas, said that the situation was not entirely surprising, “we asked the Minister of Government, which is supposed to be a friendly government that facilitates the conditions to leave Venezuela. What was planned in any case was happening.
Villegas also warned about the physical and mental consequences for their players, who had to resume training with a view to the next match against Chile.
“Sabotage”
From the Bolivian delegation, the person in charge of Logistics and Security, Harold Howard, described the fact as an act of sabotage. “They say that there is a lot of air traffic, when there were only two aircraft landing,” he denounced, questioning the justification offered by the Chavista authorities to prevent takeoff, who later claimed that “international flights are suspended,” Howard told the media.
The episode adds to a series of opaque and arbitrary practices promoted by the Venezuelan regime, which continues to generate distrust in the international arena. The Bolivian sports community and several political sectors have already demanded an official response to what they consider a new diplomatic and sports outrage.
“Classifying Commitment”
At the close of this edition, the Bolivian delegation remained retained in Venezuelan territory, while claims were raised through diplomatic and federative channels. The delay directly affects the planning of the team, which had planned to land in La Paz at 5:00 am to prepare its next qualifying commitment.
The last minute rescheduling of the game – which would initially be played on Thursday and moved to Friday without prior notice – has also reinforced the perception of premeditated maneuvers by Chavismo, in the midst of a close dispute for the seventh place to the World Cup.
