Diego Maradona’s body ‘will be moved to specially designed public memorial in Buenos Aires’ – after judge ‘permits it to be taken out of graveyard’
Diego Maradona’s body will be moved to a new public monument in a historic part of Buenos Aires after a judge allowed his corpse to be exhumed.
The Argentine legend has been buried in the Jardin Bella Vista cemetery, also in the country’s capital, since he died in 2020 at the age of 60 after suffering a heart attack at his home.
His children have been planning to build a special mausoleum since 2021 and hope to have it ready next year in the Puerto Madero neighborhood.
A judge declared the move legal on Tuesday, according to Spanish newspaper Relevo, and the monument will be called the ‘Memorial del Diez’ or ‘M10 Memorial’ after the shirt number he adorned.
It is there that Maradona, captain of Argentina’s 1986 World Cup-winning team, will “find eternal rest,” according to his family.
Diego Maradona’s body will be moved to a special public monument after a judge said yes
The Argentina and Napoli legend died in 2020 at the age of 60 after suffering a heart attack at home
He was buried in the Jardin Bella Vista garden cemetery, but his family has planned a special mausoleum for him
As his family said, it will be “a place of eternal rest where he can be visited and receive the recognition and love of the millions of people who express it in different ways every day.”
Maradona died at the age of 60, just two weeks after being released from hospital following surgery for a brain haemorrhage.
His infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal against England in the World Cup quarter-finals is one of the most iconic moments in football history and was voted ‘Goal of the Century’.
Maradona’s last words before he died were “I feel sick,” as he told his cousin.
After his death, three days of mourning were declared by then Argentine President Alberto Fernandez.
Thousands of mourners poured into the streets of Buenos Aires and Naples in Italy to honor Maradona, while stadiums across Europe fell silent ahead of Champions League matches after his death.
Maradona is survived by five children, including his daughters Dalma and Giannina, and his wife Claudia Villafane, to whom he was married from 1984 to 2004.
He had his youngest son Diego Fernando with his long-term girlfriend Veronica Ojeda in 2013; while he only acknowledged Diego Junior and daughter Jana in the five years up to his death, and both were born after brief affairs.
His family still has outstanding legal claims related to his death. In March, a judge will preside over a case in which his daughters Giannina and Dalma claim his medical team is to blame for his death.
