Ghana mourns the death of player Atsu in the Turkey earthquake

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ACCRA (Reuters) – Ghanaians gathered outside the parliament building in Accra on Friday for the state funeral of national soccer winger Christian Atsu, who died during an earthquake in southern Turkey last month.

Atsu disappeared after the February 6 earthquake following the collapse of an apartment building in Hatay. His body was later found under the rubble and flown to Ghana.

He was 31 years old.

Mourners stood silently in front of Atsu’s coffin, which arrived draped in Ghana’s national flag. Family, fans, and beneficiaries of his charitable donations remember him as a philanthropist.

“He is more than just a footballer,” said Fadna Asari, a family friend. “His name will remain in our hearts forever because he helped so many people.”

Atsu was due to fly in from southern Turkey hours before the earthquake, but the Ghanaian chose to stay with the club after scoring the winning goal in a Super League match on February 5.

The disaster killed more than 54,000 people in Turkey and Syria.

Reporting by Cooper Infin; Editing by Nellie Beaton and Alex Richardson

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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