Colombian referee Carlos Ortega, one of the best referees in Colombia and the first international referee that Cartagena has, received his first FIFA badge at the beginning of the year and made his debut in the Copa Sudamericana in the match Equity-Pasture. “I always dreamed of being a referee in an international match, thank God the opportunity was given and I enjoyed it to the fullest. It was a beautiful experience”. Son of Carlos Ortega, better known as “El Negro” Ortega, who was also a professional referee and nephew of the renowned Cartagena sports journalist, Hegel Ortega, who was also a referee in amateur soccer. His uncle Alvaro Ortega was assassinated as a referee in 1989, at a time when drug traffickers' gambling took lives in Colombian soccer. "More than fear, I think that was one of the reasons that most motivated me to be a referee, because I wanted to make people remember the name of my uncle Alvaro, because I felt that football had forgotten him. I wanted to remember my uncle in every city and stadium where I refereed. Honoring his memory was my goal since I was a child". (Source: El Universal)
30 years ago, the murderous bullets of drug trafficking ended the life of Colombian referee Alvaro Ortega. It was on 15 November 1989, when an order issued by Pablo Escobar silenced the whistle of one of the best referees in the country. In those days, Colombian society was struggling in fear of the war declared between the drug cartels. On one side was Medellin, with Escobar at the head, and on the other side, Cali, with the Rodriguez Orejuela brothers at the helm, who were fighting over the drug trafficking business in the country. The death sentence delivered by Escobar was given on 26 October of that year, after the match between America and Medellin, played on the Pascual Guerrero stadium in Cali and which ended with a 3-2 victory for America. The head of the Medellin Cartel considered that referee Ortega, who was based in Barranquilla, had harmed his team by annulling a goal by Carlos Castro, just two minutes before the end of the match. Almost three weeks later, Dimayor again appointed Alvaro Ortega as linesman for the return game in the capital of Antioquia with the same two rivals, both eliminated from any option to fight for the title. The game that fateful night ended with a draw without annotations and without refereeing incidents. However, Pablo Escobar's order to assassinate the 32-year-old referee was decided. This was confirmed by John Jairo Velasquez, alias ‘Popeye’, the right-hand man of the head of the Medellin cartel in his account in the documentary ‘Los dos Escobar’. “On that day, I was next to the boss and America de Cali beat Medellin with the referee's hand. Pablo was very offended and ordered ‘Choco’ to look for referee Alvaro Ortega to kill him”. The incident occurred a little later than 10:30 p.m. on 15 November 1989. Ortega, along with Jesus Chucho Diaz, one of his referee colleagues in that match at the Atanasio Girardot stadium in the capital of Antioquia, left the hotel to have dinner at a nearby restaurant, when they were surprised by a hit man who got out of a car. Ortega was hit nine times and in the midst of despair his friend Chucho - at that moment, the most representative referee in national football - took him to the Soma clinic, where he arrived lifeless. A murder that continues to hurt Colombian football and that became a global shame, to the point that the championship of that year was canceled without crowning any team as champion and the country receiving a harsh punishment for Colombian teams of having to play their home matches in the Copa Libertadores in a neutral venue. Venezuela and the United States were the exile of the country's representatives, all because of the fear felt by the international clubs of stepping on the coffee soil. Now, three decades later, the memory of Alvaro Ortega is still present in his family and especially for his nephew Carlos, who followed the legacy of his uncle and now stands out as one of the great prospects of Colombian refereeing. (Source: El Pais)
