Farewell to Jorge Bolaño, former Parma and Lecce footballer, dead at 47

It is cruel the irony of fate in reading the cause of death of Jorge Bolaño (pictured), former Colombian footballer who, in Italy, wore the shirts of Parma, Sam, Lecce and Modena between 1999 and 2009, died at 47 years old in Cucutà, in Colombia, while attending a relative's birthday party: infarct, and for a player who had made heart, in a literal and figurative sense, the key to his footballing success, that is, grit and running, it was perhaps the last predictable cause. Bolaño had returned to Colombia at the end of his experience in Modena, in 2009, after the salvation in Serie B obtained in Trieste on the last day. The former midfielder - already an idol and winner in Junior Barranquilla together with Valderrama, and with 38 appearances and 1 goal in Colombia - was an expert in salvation: a gritty warrior, always ready to run for his teammates, well-liked in every locker room and never inclined to individualism (both on and off the pitch), he tied his career above all to Parma. He arrived in 1999 together with his compatriot Johnnier Montaño, starting as a reserve in a team of phenomena (up front, in midfield, he had the likes of Veron, Boghossian, Dino Baggio, Almeyda, Lamouchi) to become the protagonist of the salvation after the Parmalat crash, and also in Lecce, where he played six months in 2004 and contributed to a memorable comeback. Slowed down by a serious knee injury at Sampdoria and then by other ailments, he left the memory everywhere of an impeccable professional for character and generosity.