A vibrant tribute in honor of Federico Martin Aramburu has just taken place in Paris this Sunday morning. A year after the death of the former Argentinian rugby player, shot dead in the capital, his relatives, elected officials and rugby figures gathered at 146, boulevard Saint-Germain, in the sixth arrondissement of the capital, where the 42-year-old ex-international was killed. The family and friends of the former sportsman were present, as well as Serge Blanco, former boss of Biarritz Olympique with which he had twice been crowned champion of France, the Argentine coach Gonzalo Quesada or the former president of the French Federation rugby player Bernard Laporte.
In the moved crowd, where some carried flowers, stood Shaun Hegarty, friend and associate of Federico Martin Aramburu, who was with him the evening of his death, as well as Thomas Lievremont, Damien Traille, Imanol Harinordoquy and Thierry Dusautoir. The ex-Puma was shot dead on March 19, 2022 after an altercation in a bar. The two main suspects are two activists anchored on the far right: Romain Bouvier and Loïk Le Priol, a former soldier and activist of the ultra-right movement Groupe Union Défense (GUD), who had fled to Hungary after the events. before being arrested. They were indicted in particular for “assassination” and imprisoned.
“The fight against the far right, racism and hatred”
“All extremism causes disasters, but this irrational and characteristic hatred of the extreme right towards all that it considers to be different from itself makes it a constant threat in many societies”, declared in particular Cécilia, the mother of Federico Martin Aramburu. “The truth of Federico’s murder could not be hidden, it is obvious to everyone. That is why we are here today, paying tribute to Federico for the person of great value that he was, but also to protect his honor, because he was the victim of an execution that should never have been take place,” she said. Argentina’s ambassador to France, Leonardo Daniel Costantino, said he had come “to embody the support of the Argentine state for Federico’s family and my country’s condemnation of this act of extreme violence against an Argentine compatriot, who also French nationality.
A year later, “the injustice is infinite, the anger and misunderstanding still the same”, underlined Pierre Rabadan, deputy mayor of Paris in charge of Sport, himself a former rugby player. Hailing “a solar personality”, “an exceptional rugby player”, he added: “The violence and the ideas that led to the worst here will always be fought. The fight against the extreme right, racism, hatred, identity ideology will always be at the heart of our values”. At the end of the brief speeches, a plaque in memory of the deceased, which will be placed later, was unveiled. Federico Martin Aramburu, former center or winger for Biarritz (2004-2006), Perpignan (2006-2008) or Dax (2008-2010), had 22 selections with Argentina. Since retiring from sport, he lived in Biarritz and worked in tourism.