Professional football player Lorena Benítez has temporarily hung up her boots and is instead supporting her family by running a fruit and vegetable business in Buenos Aires, following the suspension of Argentina’s sporting leagues amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Footage filmed last week shows Benítez, a midfielder for the Boca Juniors women’s team, and her partner Veronica Rivero loading bags of vegetables into a delivery van at Buenos Aires Central Market.
Benítez decided to continue the business during the lockdown, explaining that “we can quietly hang out there, stay at home, but we have several employees who have children and we cannot cut their work, they need it and that is why we go out to stand up for them and us”.
Although she misses training and matches, the football pro enjoys being at home with her family, especially when playing football with Renata and Ezequiel, the couple’s young twins. However, she takes safety precautions seriously when running her business during the coronavirus outbreak. “We try to wear a face mask, to put gel alcohol all the time, not to be in contact with all the people, not to say hello and take care of ourselves”, she said.
Alongside being a professional footballer, business owner, and parent of young twins, 21-year-old Benítez is also a talented futsal player.
According to the official report from Argentina’s Ministry of Health, the country so far has 1,795 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 65 deaths from the disease. Argentina’s president, Alberto Fernández, declared a lockdown on March 20. The measures were initially announced as lasting until March 31, but have been extended until at least April 12.
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