With his generous and compassionate gesture, national football player Merih Demiral, who plays for Serie A's Atalanta, has achieved an incredible feat: His campaign to raise donations for the victims of the devastating southeastern Türkiye earthquake has reached an impressive total of TL 9 million ($478,000), all thanks to countless helping hands reaching out in support.
Announcing the updates in the sales of signed jerseys on his official Twitter account, the center back stated that the coveted jerseys of Norwegian striker Erling Haaland and French player Antoine Griezmann have been snapped up for a whopping TL 750,000.
Renowned superstars such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Kevin De Bruyne, Karim Benzema, Harry Kane, Paulo Dybala, Eden Hazard, Alvaro Morata, Leonardo Bonucci and legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon all joined forces to support Merih Demiral's campaign to help earthquake victims.
Eljif Elmas, who currently plies his trade for Napoli, purchased the signed jersey of French forward Kylian Mbappe for TL 700,000.
The North Macedonian star also stated that they were considering an aid campaign with his team for the quake victims.
In a short video post on his Instagram account, he said: "I deeply regret the current situation in my Türkiye. I am doing my utmost to assist, and in addition to providing aid, we are exploring ways to raise money as a team from Napoli. We are ardently working on this and hope to be able to donate to Türkiye as swiftly as we can. We are looking forward to helping."
Showing a team-signed jersey on his Instagram story, the 23-year-old star, said: "My dear Türkiye, we are putting our jerseys up for auction with my teammates. We are looking forward to helping you."
Elmas also shared photos showing the signed jerseys of his teammates Georgian Kvicha Kvaratskelia and Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen.
Elmas, who scored the third goal in the match where Napoli beat Cremonese 3-0 in the 22nd week of Serie A over the weekend, showed that he dedicated his goal to Türkiye by making the crescent star with his hands during the goal celebration.
National archer Mete Gazoz reported that he auctioned the arrow he used in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, where he won a gold medal, and that he will donate the future income to be used in the education of the children, who were affected by the "disaster of the century."
Gazoz, in his statement on his social media account, said: "I am delighted to have donated the arrow I used to triumph in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to the auction hosted by Socrates Magazine, all in aid of our children whose families have been financially impacted by the recent earthquake. Currently, the highest bid stands at an impressive TL 80,000. To take part in the bidding and view the many other incredible items up for auction, simply visit SocratesSahada.com."
The International Judo Federation (IJF) also launched an "International Earthquake Relief Campaign" to aid both Turkish and Syrian victims.
In a statement released by the Turkish Judo Federation, it was noted that the International Judo Federation had collaborated with them to set up a donation platform for those affected by the devastating earthquakes in 10 provinces of Türkiye, including Kahramanmaraş, as well as for northern Syria.
