Kumar Bahukhandi
Lionel Messi – Photo : twitter
The awards ceremony held on Saturday was attended by prominent personalities like Hillary Clinton, basketball legend Magic Johnson, fashion designer Ralph Lauren and others, but Messi’s absence was in the headlines.
Lionel Messi has clarified his absence from the ‘Presidential Medal of Freedom’ honor ceremony. He has cited his absence as a difficult schedule in football. The ‘Presidential Medal of Freedom’ is awarded to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the prosperity or security of the United States, values, peace in the world or other significant social, public or private efforts.
Football legend Messi was one of the 19 people chosen by President Joe Biden. He said that he is grateful and proud of this honor. Prominent personalities like Hillary Clinton, basketball legend Magic Johnson, fashion designer Ralph Lauren etc. attended the honor ceremony held on Saturday, but Messi’s absence was in the headlines.
Messi, who made Argentina the world champion in the year 2022, was the special attraction of the ceremony. His absence angered the fans and called it disrespectful. His PR team later explained that Messi was struggling with scheduling and prior commitments prevented him from attending the honor ceremony. At the same time, according to US Express, after learning in December that he would receive the prestigious honor from President Joe Biden, Messi sent a letter to the White House expressing his gratitude.
After not attending the event, Messi expressed hope to meet the US President in the future. The White House informed FIFA and Messi’s club in late December that he was going to be given this honor. After this, Messi sent a letter to the White House through the club stating that he is feeling very honored and receiving this honor means a lot to him. However, Messi already has a lot of commitments, due to which he will not be able to participate.
However, there was no mention of his commitments and schedule of events in this letter. Messi’s wife Antonella Roccuzzo recently shared a poolside picture. Antonella shared pictures of her New Year celebrations on Instagram. This shows that Messi is currently spending quality time with his family. Messi is an eight-time Ballon d’Or honor-winning footballer. It is given to the best footballer of the year. Messi won the award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023.
