Christian Atsu, ex Chelsea, among the missing in the earthquake in Turkey – Corriere.it

A war scenario. If not something even worse. what Turkey is experiencing in these hours following the earthquake – magnitude scale 7.8 – which devastated the country and claimed more than 1,800 victims. An enormous tragedy, which the President of Turkey Erdogan has defined as the greatest disaster since 1939 (the country’s leader was referring to the Erzincan earthquake, which in 1939 caused the death of about 33,000 people). A disaster that inevitably involved – in its small way – also the world of Turkish sport.

After the testimony of Vincenzo Montella (coach of Adana Demirspor, a few kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake) who, however, did not experience the earthquake directly because he was away in Istanbul, and of the volleyball player Lucia Bosetti (she also plays in Adana and said he was fine), we learn that among the missing there Christian Atsu, Hatayspor footballer (in the Turkish Serie A) which could be under piles of rubble. The player also boasts an important European past: in 2012-13 he exploded with Porto, so much so as to convince Chelsea to invest in him. In the Premier League he was unable to express himself at his best and began a long wandering between Vitesse, Everton, Bournemouth, Newcastle, Malaga, the Arab league and – precisely – Hatayspor.

Even the sporting director of Hatayspor Taner Savut would still be under the rubble. Ahmet Eyup Turkaslan, goalkeeper born in 1994 of Malatyaspor in the Turkish Serie B, on the other hand, didn’t make it. Obviously, in the meantime, the Turkish sports minister has announced the halt of all sporting competitions in the country. The Maraşspor football team, Turkish third tier, is also involved

According to the newspaper Haber Global at least two volleyball teams are involved: the building that housed 14 players of Hatay Voleybol who were staying inAntakya Sports Hall were involved in the collapse of the building. Another 15 volleyball players and 4 Paralympic athletes were affected by the collapse of the Kıruval Hotel in Battalgazi.

Olympic wrestling champion Taha Agkulgold in Rio 2016 in the -125kg, explained that 30-40 athletes were involved in a collapse in Kahramanmaraşepicenter of the earthquake, and that at least two of our brothers are dead, and many more have not yet been extracted.