Ecuadoran Olympic sprinter Alex Quinonez was shot dead in the port city of Guayaquil, authorities have said, sparking an outpouring of grief in a country struggling to contain a surge in violence.
Quinonez, 32, and another person were found dead close to midnight on Friday, police said.
Ecuadoran President Guillermo Lasso promised to bring the sprinter’s killers to justice.
Photo: AFP
“Those who take the lives of Ecuadoreans will not remain unpunished. We will act with force,” Lasso wrote on Twitter.
The provincial governor likewise pledged accountability for the murders.
“No one will rest until @PoliciaEcuador captures the culprits. We are facing a war against drug gangs that intend to subdue us,” Guayas Governor Pablo Arosemena said on Twitter.
Photo: Reuters
The country’s sports ministry confirmed Quinonez’s killing on Twitter, paying tribute to the “greatest sprinter this country produced.”
“We have lost a great sportsman, someone who allowed us to dream, who moved us,” the ministry said.
Quinonez held Ecuador’s record for 200m with a time of 19.87 seconds.
He was a finalist in the 2012 London Games, achieving seventh place after competing in the semi-finals in the lane next to Usain Bolt, the fastest sprinter in history.
The Ecuadoran Olympic Committee said that the death of Quinonez “leaves us with profound pain” and that his “legacy will forever stay in our hearts.”
The sprinter’s body was due to return to his hometown of Esmeraldas on Saturday night.
A tribute yesterday was to see the athlete’s coffin placed in a burning chapel in a soccer stadium in the town, the sports ministry said.
Quinonez’s killing comes as violence has spiked dramatically in Ecuador in the past few months.
From January to this month, the country registered almost 1,900 homicides, compared with about 1,400 in the whole of last year, the government said.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two