Mournful, Argentina mobilized en masse Thursday for a last farewell to Diego Maradona: thousands of supporters marched in front of his remains before the planned burial in the evening in Buenos Aires, the day after the icon's disappearance, adored far beyond the football world.
At dawn, a long line of thousands of supporters began to meander around the historic Place de Mai in the hope of entering "Casa Rosada", the seat of the Argentine presidency where the funeral vigil was being held until 'at 4:00 p.m. local time (8:00 p.m. French time).
Clashes broke out with the police who tried around 2 p.m. to interrupt access to the ardent chapel.
A huge black ribbon adorned the entrance to the pink stone building, whose flags were at half mast as a sign of national mourning decreed for three days.
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The closed coffin containing the remains of the football legend was covered with the Argentinian flag and the various jerseys of the teams for which Maradona played, in particular those of the Argentine selection and Boca Juniors, flocked with the mythical number 10. The funeral, "With a religious service", was planned in the wake of the Jardin de Paz cemetery, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, spokesman Sebastian Sanchi told AFP.
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