Tragedy as 4 players and 1 top club official die in a plane crash
- Palmas, a Serie D Brazilian side were scheduled to take on Vila Nova on Monday night, January 25, in a cup competition
- However, the weekend tragedy has seen the tie postponed even as tributes keep pouring in
- All the five occupants of the small aircraft including the pilot are understood to have lost their lives in the crash
- The four players, aged between 23 and 27 only joined Palmas in 2021
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Brazilian fourth-tier side Palmas have been plunged into mourning following the death of the club president and four players.
The five tragically met their death after a plane they were flying enroute a cup tie crashed on take off.
According to Mail Online, the small aircraft was ferrying the group to a Brazilian cup tournament on Sunday, January 24.
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In a statement by the Palmas, the club announced president Lucas Keira alongside players Guiherme Noe, Marcus Molinari, Ranule and Lucas Praxedes all perished.
Source: Getty Images
The crash also saw the pilot, only identified as Wagner lose his life in the incident. The club lamented:
“The plane on which Lucas was with Commander Wagner and athletes Lucas Praxedes, Guilherme Noé, Ranule and Marcus Molinari, took off and crashed at the end of the runway of the Tocantins Association of Aviation.
“We regret to inform you that there are no survivors. In this moment of pain and dismay, the club asks for prayers for the relatives to whom it will provide the necessary support, and emphasises that in due time it will speak again."
The travellers were set to fly out to Goiania where Palmas were due to take on Vila Nova later on Monday, January 25, in the Copa Verde.
The tie has since been postponed in the wake of the tragedy according to the Brazilian Football Confederation.
Meanwhile, the four players, aged between 23 and 27 had only joined the Serie D side in 2021.
The incident prompted a number of tributes on social media, with a number of clubs including Chapecoense, who lost 19 squad members in a plane crash back in November 2016 mourning with Palmas.
Chapecoense posted on social media:
“Unfortunately, we know how this moment of insurmountable pain from irreparable losses is like and we would like that no other group had to feel the same."
Legit.ng earlier reported that Jamaica’s record goalscorer and former Sheffield United star Luton Shelton has passed away at the age of 35, according to a statement by the club.
It was gathered that the former striker had battled Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis for some time but he, sadly, lost the fight.
He spent a season at Bramall Lane between 2007 and 2008 and left the club with remarkable contributions as he remains a cult hero there.
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