00:28Thank you!
00:30Fernando Tobar, I was born on September 17, 1937, and I participated as an active player with Colombia in the World Cup in Chile.
00:41in '62.
00:44Players called up to training camp to form the Colombian national team.
00:52I began saying goodbye to the national team, a demonstration of support and confidence from the Colombians.
00:58The Colombian national team at the World Cup finals in Erika.
01:04Colombian professional football was born in 1948, but later gave rise to a period known as the
01:13Golden,
01:14in which, in a somewhat irregular manner, star players from Argentine and Uruguayan football are hired,
01:24Brazilian,
01:24that dominated the Colombian scene until 1953.
01:31As a result of an agreement within CONMEBOL, known as the Lima Pact, those players return to their
01:38clubs of origin.
01:39Colombia is left in its true footballing state.
01:44A somewhat languid period of sporting decline followed, but in the early 1960s, as a result of the evolution of
01:57world football
01:58And with the World Championships approaching, it is beginning to be seen as a rebirth of Colombian professional football.
02:10The first time Colombia decided to compete in a World Cup qualifier was in the World Cup qualifier
02:21from Sweden in 1958
02:22and determined a very discreet participation, without any public appearance.
02:28When the qualifying rounds for Chile arrived in 1962, there was a peculiarity, because the qualifying matches were initially against Bolivia and Peru,
02:39But Bolivia withdrew from participating, and it was really a double confrontation with Peru.
02:46which was one of the great teams in South America at that time,
02:48with the surprise that the team formed by the former Dorado soccer player, Adolfo Pedernera,
02:57They ended up qualifying for the World Cup in Chile in 1962, against the expectations of the Colombian fans themselves.
03:14Welcome to Chile, the World Cup.
03:17We qualified as if playing against Pedro, we eliminated him in the countryside.
03:22Chifa González, this husband, makes him a former player and a millionaire player,
03:27always a millionaire player too.
03:30Copetina Ponte, Canocho Echeverri, Caimán Sánchez, Delio Maravilla Gamboa,
03:37Charol González, the Cucasero, Caimán Sánchez.
03:46So, at that time, while he was being elected as the second president of the National Front in Colombia,
03:53the conservative president Guillermo León Valencia,
03:56So it was Colombia's turn to debut in Arica, Chile, against Uruguay.
04:04on May 30, 1962, with a 2-1 defeat.
04:10Uruguay demonstrated their greater experience, playing with intensity, applying high pressure, and having more space on the field.
04:20He turned the game around and the debut was 2-1.
04:23And the great moment that several generations experienced from that time was that famous June 3, 1962,
04:32when they tied with Russia 4-4, after the game was 4-1.
04:38Marco Pol takes a step back, makes a pass with his right leg, passes the ball towards the goal and it goes in.
04:47goal for Colombia.
04:49Olympic.
04:53Then, in a matter of minutes, there were three goals that shocked the country,
04:59which created a totally festive atmosphere in the stadium in Arica, Chile,
05:07and that Colombia remembered for a long time.
05:11And it was always said that the Russia jersey worn by the CCCP meant we almost lost to Colombia.
05:27Mono Tobar is an emblem of Independiente Santa Fe.
05:32I can vaguely recall, it refers a bit to the teams from my childhood.
05:41And obviously he always stood out as a box-to-box player, very willing,
05:48very much in the Santa Fe spirit.
05:52He clearly played for the Colombian national team; he was an important figure in that team.
05:59who had other players like Jaime Silva, Zipa González,
06:03who were also from that same school in Santa Fe,
06:06which later shaped a very important man in football, named Alfonso Sepúlveda.
06:12He is a living memory of Colombian football,
06:15which is an extraordinary and exceptional witness to the first glorious moments of this wonderful sport
06:25and that is a source of pride for the people of Santa Fe and for all Colombians
06:30that he continues to be an important role model in this sport that is popular with the masses in our nation.
06:55Thank you!
07:03Thank you!
07:04Thank you!
07:05Thank you!
