By Iván García Marrero @igarcia100.- The pandemic and the economic inconsistencies of Venezuelan professional football drove off the fields ‘Borolo’, thus known throughout a country that has seen him with various shirts, including the national jacket. Today the technician takes refuge in the kitchen.
The land of gold saw him born, the same land where soccer was played for the first time in Venezuela. Baptized as Rubén Yori, But near a soccer field, his name is Borolo, only his real name appears on the score sheet, because even the referees know him by his nickname.
And from the south of the state, in his native El Callao, began the story of this man who was led by football to travel practically all over the country and much of South America, both due to his presence in continental tournaments, such as the Copa Libertadores. , as well as wearing the national coat.
But today Rubén, with bright eyes from the past, sentences: “I don’t think I’ll go back to football”, After a combination of effects from the COVID-19 pandemic and economic inconsistencies in his last experiences as a technical director, where he, his team and players still suffer from late payments, now his life and his future are in the food.
It all started in El Callao
Rubén Yori was born and raised in the Tres Rosas neighborhood of El Callao, and like everyone else in the gold-bearing town, he was always linked to three things: gold, soccer and the calypso. Thus passed his childhood and his life.
“From a very young age I liked working and helping others. I got to work in a bakery, I also sold batteries and one that always makes me laugh a lot, was that when a circus came to town, together with Negrín, a childhood baker, we polished the boots of those who worked in the circus and they paid us with tickets and we enjoyed a world watching the performances. But I also worked in the mines, now a little older, it can be said that I have always defended myself in the face of life “, account Borolo.
But soccer could not be out of Rubén’s life, these streets being the same where this sport was played for the first time in the history of the country. “We played football every holy day, with sun and rain, we never stopped, but that, together with so many others, we started our way in the lower levels of Minasoro and Minerven”, says Rubén.
– And how do you get to the professional?
“With the passage of Minerven from amateur to professionalism, many kids from El Callao began to be part of the youth team (now under20) and with the help of Fernando Martínez we began our professional career, which began in Minerven and in where we were national champions of a tournament called Loto-Gol, directed by the Uruguayan Víctor Filomeno and Del Valle Rojas, our popular Vallito. That’s where it all started ”, Rubén Yori tells us.
Long career path
In a meteoric way, Borolo’s professional career grew like foam and with the characteristic that almost every team he was in was champion. Del Minerven FC keeps his best memories, but in his memory he cannot forget his steps by Deportivo Táchira, Deportivo ItalChacao, Trujillanos, Unión Atlético Maracaibo, Carabobo FC, Mineros de Guayana, Deportivo Anzoátegui and again with Mineros de Guayana where finally finished his professional career.
The national team was part of his career, acting with the national team of the sub20 category in the South American disputed in Bolivia, under the command of Richard Páez and with the absolute, he was in the cycle of the Argentine Omar Pastoriza and the wine boom again under the hand of Páez.
From technician to cook
Leaving football behind as a professional activity, Rubén Yori took off his shorts and began to be interested in the world of technical management, although on weekends he did not miss a game at Ítalo with many of his former professional colleagues.
“My beginnings as a coach were from below, with the lower ranks of Mineros de Guayana and where I climbed to the second division. It is really nice to see the growth of young people, but at the same time sad, especially in the face of so many difficulties they have to go through these days, but we always manage to make very good groups. Minerven, Chicó in the second professional and Lala in first made up our work, but the abrupt arrival of the pandemic brought everything to an end “, indica Borolo.
But Rubén did not stay with his arms crossed and with the passing of the months he dedicated himself to gastronomy and today in his bunker he offers known and strangers excellent fried fish, roasts and succulent soups, especially on weekends.
Where Borolo…
That’s how simple is the name of your typical restaurant, completely outdoors, with the shade of a large mango bush and with the breeze from the Caroní River.
His soup is considered by many as his great presentation letter. “With my teammates from Deportivo Anzoátegui, I learned to fry fish in Cumaná, but at my place I have the support of a great chef. The soup was taught to me by my aunt in El Callao and I tell you that all the women in the sector (Castillito) go crazy with the taste of my soup. And here we are with open arms to receive them and to make them taste excellent fried fish, both from the river and the sea ”.
But Borolo cannot forget that a large part of his family is abroad like so many Venezuelans who suffer from the diaspora that plagues our country. “They, my children, are far, far away. They are in Amsterdam, Holland, and I miss them too much. I try to distract myself every day so as not to get so down, but on Mondays when I have less activity, I just think about them and I really can’t stand it. I don’t know when will be the day they can return ”, expressed Rubén Borolo Yori.
Soccer is a fond memory for him, today he is dedicated to his food business, although he left an open door, where only a serious project would allow him to return to the activity he loves so much.