Maradona returns to Cuba

2005-01-06 08:45

Havana - Argentine soccer hero Diego Maradona returned to Cuba on Wednesday to resume treatment for a cocaine addiction after spending the holidays with his family in Buenos Aires.

Maradona left Buenos Aires early on Wednesday, and after missing a connecting flight in Panama, didn't arrive in Havana until nearly midnight.

He was picked up by an official entourage of cars on the Havana airport runway and whisked away without speaking to journalists gathered at the airport.

Maradona, 44, has been hospitalised repeatedly over the last four years in his battle with severe health problems brought on by his drug usage.

The soccer great, who received drug treatment in Cuba in 2000, decided to come back to the Caribbean island last fall after a relapse confined him to a psychiatric hospital in his native Argentina and sparked unsuccessful attempts by his family to keep him there.

He has cited the need for greater privacy as a reason for seeking treatment in Cuba.

While on the island in the past, the hero of Argentina's 1986 World Cup title run stayed at an upscale health tourism resort where his movements were unrestricted and he often invited people to his guest house.

During this latest stretch, however, Maradona has been secluded at a mental health centre in a quiet, palm-tree lined area of western Havana. After his arrival on September 20 he was not seen publicly until December 5, when he left for Buenos Aires.

After arriving in Buenos Aires in early December, Maradona assured his supporters that he was recovering from his drug addiction in a television interview and said he hoped to be released soon from his treatment program in Havana.

In 2000, Fifa chose Maradona and Pele as the greatest players in soccer history. Maradona retired in 1997.

- AP