The victims of the plane crash that claimed the lives of 71 people, including 19 players from Brazilian football club Chapeconese, were remembered at a CONMEBOL ceremony on Thursday evening.
Tributes were paid by the South American football confederation to the team, who were declared Copa Sudamericana champions after their opponents, Atletico Nacional, proposed they be awarded with the trophy.
The club's president, Plínio David De Nes, was presented with the trophy, and asked that he be accompanied by Daniel Jiménez Ochoa, the president of Atletico Nacional, so that the two teams could share the prize.
"It's a moment of great sadness, but also one of happiness," said De Nes. "Tonight, I would like to thank every nation [for their support], and I hope that I will be allowed to thank, in a very special way on behalf of our club, Atletico Nacional de Medellin, by sharing the trophy with them; the team that gave us the chance to obtain it."
Entrega de la Copa Sudamericana 2016 a Chapecoense https://t.co/geHqvGHQHf
— CONMEBOL.com (@CONMEBOL) December 22, 2016
Ochoa was presented with the CONMEBOL Fair Play award on the night for the gesture from his club to Chapecoense.
Tributes were paid on the night to the journalists who died in the crash, with their names displayed on two large screens, while a video homage to the club as a whole was also shown, featuring the players who lost their lives on the flight.
Homenaje a los periodistas fallecidos en la tragedia aérea. pic.twitter.com/bIOs2lVO1F
— CONMEBOL.com (@CONMEBOL) December 22, 2016
Homenaje a @ChapecoenseReal. pic.twitter.com/xeDIgIhBgN
— CONMEBOL.com (@CONMEBOL) December 22, 2016
The draw for the group phase of the Copa Libertadores, the equivalent of the Champions League, took place on Thursday as well. Chapecoense were drawn in Group 7 with Zulia of Venezuela, Argentine side Lanús, and Uruguay's Nacional.
