Ramón Unzaga

Ramón Unzaga Asla (1894 – 31 August 1923) was a Chilean citizen football player. He was born in Bilbao, Spain. Unzaga emigrated to Talcahuano, Chile, in 1906 at 12 years of age, with his parents. In 1912 the eighteen-year-old Unzaga impressed the Talcahuano sports delegation with his football ability, so they signed him to the football club. He began his career and adopted the Chilean nationality. Unzaga is attributed as the first person to create the bicycle kick, devising the move playing for his club team in 1914 in El Morro stadium of Talcahuano. The kick is labeled the chorera in honor of the team he played for that was called the escuela chorera (chorera school) at the time. In the Copa America of 1916 and 1920 playing for the Chilean national team, Unzaga repeated the kick on various occasions in which the Argentine press labels the kick as la chilena.^[1]

Unzaga received many offers to play with international football clubs but always chose to stay with Club Atlético y de Fútbol Estrella de Mar of Talcahuano. On May 15, 2014, the municipality of Talcahuano inaugurated a monument of Ramon Unzaga in his honor.^[2]

Other Related Facts

Since that Unzaga's move was born in the El Morro Stadium,^[3] is in its honor that the stadium was renamed after him.

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