Promising Filipina booter dies at 16
PHILIPPINE football is mournM ing the untimely death of one its young stalwarts, 16-year-old Celestina Beatrice Luna, on TuesM day due to arteriovenous malM formation, a medical condition characterized by an abnormal tangling of blood vessels conM necting arteries and veins that disrupts normal blood flow and oxygen circulation.
“Until now ‘diparinakomakaM paniwalasanangyarisakanya (I can’t still believe what happened to her). I know ‘ di s’ya (it’s not a) minor case but still I prayed hard for her recovery. She’s too young to experience that and an untimely death,” said Philippine Girls’ Under- 15 national team head coach Rachelle Delos Reyes in an online interview with The ManilaTimes.
“Mahirap tanggapin pero kaiM langan (It’s hard to accept it but we must). Maybe God has another plan,” she added.
A talented player from Baguio City, Luna helped the Young MalM ditas achieve a fourth-place finish in the nine-team 2019 Asean Football Federation U-15 Girls’ Championship in Chonburi, Thailand.
The gritty defender scored a goal in her only appearance for the Philippine squad — 12-0 beatdown of Timor-Leste.
“Bea is a very nice girl. Always smiling and when I gave her adM vice and instructions, she always listens. The football community is mourning her passing. She’s a potential player and a fighter,” said Delos Reyes.
The Philippine Football FedM eration (PFF) has issued a statement of condolence to the family and friends of Luna.
“The PFF, its officials and staff, join the entire Philippine football community in mourning the loss of Luna,” it said. “The PFF requests the football community to pray for the eternal repose of her soul.
Pinay Futbol, an online comM munity of Filipina football playM ers and fans, also paid homage to Luna.
“We humbly ask all our prayer warriors to continue praying for her soul and to give strength to the family that she has left behind,” it said in a Facebook post.
“We miss you already, but soar high Bea! We lost one of our own t o d a y, but God gained another viM brant little angel.”