Roberto Chery (16 February 1896 – 30 May 1919) was a Uruguayan

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

who played during the days of amateur sport in the

Uruguayan Primera División The Liga Profesional de Primera División (American Spanish , en, First Division Professional League, local: , ''First Division''), named "Torneo Uruguayo Copa Coca-Cola" for sponsorship reasons, is the highest professional Association football, ...

(1900–1931). Chery made his club career entirely at

Peñarol Club Atlético Peñarol (; English: ''Peñarol Athletic Club'') —also known as ''Carboneros'', ''Aurinegros,'' and (familiarly) ''Manyas''— is a Uruguayan sports club from Montevideo. The name "Peñarol" comes from the Peñarol neigh ...

, where he had successfully passed a test with his two best friends and then also international footballers,

Isabelino Gradín Isabelino Gradín (8 July 1897 – 21 December 1944) was a Uruguayan footballer and athlete. He was considered to be one of the greatest footballers in the early era of Uruguayan football and is regarded as one of the greatest Uruguayan players ...

and

Antonio Campolo Antonio Campolo (born 7 February 1897 – 22 May 1959) was a Uruguayan footballer who played as a forward for Peñarol Club Atlético Peñarol (; English: ''Peñarol Athletic Club'') —also known as ''Carboneros'', ''Aurinegros,'' and ...

Summary

Chery died while playing for

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

against

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

in the

1919 South American Championship The 1919 South American Championship of Nations was the third continental championship for South American national football teams. It was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from 11 to 29 May 1919. The participating countries were Brazil, Argentin ...

.Una historia trágica en la Copa América
on Prensa Libre, 13 June 2016 It was Chery's debut (and subsequently his only game) with the national team after coach Severino Castillo decided he would replace

Cayetano Saporiti Cayetano Saporiti (January 14, 1887 – 1954) was a Uruguayan football goalkeeper who played 56 games for the Uruguay national team between 1905 and 1919. Biography He made his debut for the national team at 18 years 179 days making him the thi ...

. Although he suffered a severe pain after making a save during the match, Chery was not replaced and continue playing. 13 days after the injury, Chery was operated at ''Casa do Sáude'' in Brazil but he did not survive the surgery and died at 19:40.A 100 años de la desgracia de Chery
by Marcelo Decaux at ''El Observador''. 25 May 2019 The cause of death was a

hernia A hernia is the abnormal exit of tissue or an organ (anatomy), organ, such as the bowel, through the wall of the cavity in which it normally resides. Various types of hernias can occur, most commonly involving the abdomen, and specifically the gr ...

which complicated after the physically demanding match he played for Uruguay. Chery's body was stuffed and then transported in ship to

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, where he was buried at

Cementerio del Buceo Cementerio del Buceo is a cemetery in Montevideo, Uruguay. It was established in 1872. It is located in the ''barrio'' of Buceo, near the shores of the River Plate. Nearby is the British Cemetery. Notable burials * Rafael Barradas (1890–1 ...

Aftermath

Brazil and Uruguay teams had scheduled a friendly match (

Copa Rio Branco Copa or COPA may refer to: COPA COPA may refer to: * Computer Operator Programming Assistant. trade of ITI * Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet * Canadian Owners and Pilots Asso ...

) for 19 June 1919. Due to the Uruguayan side declined to participate because of Chery's tragic death,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

offered to replace the Uruguayan side. After the Brazilian Federation accepted, the match (now named "Copa Roberto Chery" to honor the goalkeeper) was finally played. Argentina entered to the field wearing Uruguay's traditional light-blue jersey while Brazil wore the

jersey.La más hermosa página de fraternidad
''El Gráfico'' All incomes from ticket sales were donated to Chery's family, while the trophy was given to Club Peñarol after an agreement between both captains.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chery, Robert 1896 births 1919 deaths Association football players who died while playing Uruguayan men's footballers Uruguay men's international footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Sport deaths in Brazil