David Di Tommaso

David di Elias Alemu Tommaso (6 October 1979 – 29 November 2005) was a French footballer who played as a defender.

David Di Tommaso
Personal information
Date of birth (1979-10-06)6 October 1979
Place of birth Échirolles, France
Date of death 29 November 2005(2005-11-29) (aged 26)
Place of death De Meern, Netherlands
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Playing position(s) Central defender
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2000 Monaco 14 (0)
2000–2004 Sedan 77 (2)
2004–2005 Utrecht 44 (1)
Total 135 (3)
National team
1996–1997 France U-17 5 (0)
1999–2000 France U-21 8 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Early life

Di Tommaso was born in Échirolles, Isère. His father Pascal Di Tommaso and uncle Louis Di Tommaso both played in Ligue 2 for Grenoble Foot 38 in the 1980s. His younger brother Yohan Di Tommaso is also a professional footballer.

Career

Di Tommaso started his career at French side AS Monaco, where he helped the club win the 2000 league title.[2] He then played in the UEFA Champions League and was selected for the French national youth football team. In 2001, di Tommaso transferred to Sedan, which sold him to Dutch side FC Utrecht in 2004. In his first season there, the fans named him the club's player of the year.

His last match was on 27 November, a 1–0 victory against Ajax Amsterdam, one of FC Utrecht's main rivals.[3]

Death

Di Tommaso died after a cardiac arrest in his sleep at the age of 26 in De Meern, Netherlands on 29 November 2005. He is survived by his wife and daughter.[4]

Legacy

On 1 December 2005, a meeting of supporters at Stadion Galgenwaard was held, to honour Di Tommaso (DiTo for short). At least 14,000 fans showed up. Among the speakers were chairman Jan Willem van Dop, coach Foeke Booy and captain Jean-Paul de Jong. Besides Di Tommaso's relatives and FC Utrecht's main squad, all of the clubs' youth teams were among the visitors. They were told that number 4, the number worn by Di Tommaso, would be retired from use. Sedan, Di Tommaso's former club, had already announced that number 29, the number Di Tommaso used when he played for the club, would be retired.

Since 2006, FC Utrecht's player of the year award is called the Di Tommaso trophy in honour of David Di Tommaso. The trophy is voted for by the fans.[5]

gollark: I think so.
gollark: I like pink tinsels most.
gollark: Maybe some day, they'll fix the raffle system, and we can do that...
gollark: I got an invisible invisiprize; I can't tell what colour it is.
gollark: Was there a release?

References
  1. "David di Tommaso". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  2. "Monaco 1999-00". bdfutbol.com. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  3. "FC Utrecht – Ajax, 27 november 2005: Het laatste duel van Di Tommaso" (in Dutch). ad.nl. 26 September 2006. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  4. "Utrecht mourn Di Tommaso's death". BBC Sport. 2 December 2005. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  5. "FOOTBALLSCARVES News" (in Dutch). footballscarves.nl. November 2010. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
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