DistantNews
Support us
๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ท Greece /Health & Science

Former Panathinaikos Player Spyros Maragkos Hospitalized for ALS

From Ta Nea · () Greek

Translated from Greek and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Ongoing story
  • Former Panathinaikos footballer Spyros Maragkos is hospitalized for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
  • He will undergo a specific treatment for a month and a half at Sismanogleio Hospital.
  • Maragkos, a four-time league and three-time cup winner, previously shared his struggles with the rare disease and urged fans to show empathy.

Former Panathinaikos player Spyros Maragkos is currently hospitalized at Sismanogleio Hospital to undergo treatment for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease. The 59-year-old, who played for the club for seven years, was admitted for a month-and-a-half-long therapeutic regimen.

It was July 2016 when the doctors informed me that I had an extremely rare and painful degenerative disease, for me and my family. For three years now, I have been living each day with anger, sadness, mental pain, fear, and unanswered questions.

· Spyros MaragkosSpeaking about his illness in November 2019.

Panathinaikos Football Club and its owner, Giannis Alafouzos, have expressed their support for Maragkos since the beginning of his health battle. Maragkos, a celebrated figure for his contributions to the "greens," won four league titles (1990, 1991, 1995, 1996) and three Greek Cups (1991, 1993, 1994) during his tenure from 1990 to 1997.

Think that we are simple and vulnerable people like everyone else. We have a family, children, a spouse, parents, and we do not deserve all this torrent of insults you hurl at us.

· Spyros MaragkosAppealing to football fans in November 2019.

In a poignant message shared in November 2019, Maragkos spoke about his diagnosis in July 2016. He described living each day with "anger, sadness, mental pain, fear, and unanswered questions." He also appealed to football fans, regardless of their team affiliation, to refrain from abusive language directed at athletes and coaches. "Think that we are simple and vulnerable people like everyone else," he wrote, emphasizing that athletes have families and deserve respect. He urged fans to remember that "these kinds of 'fan rivalries' do not belong in human behavior in general." Maragkos concluded his message by framing his fight against ALS as his most important life battle, expressing his determination to win, just as he did in every match he played.

This fight is the most difficult of my entire life, the most important. And I want to tell everyone that, just as in every match I have played, I do not consider any other result than victoryโ€ฆ

· Spyros MaragkosExpressing his determination in November 2019.
About this summary

Originally published by Ta Nea in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog