Iki gihembo sicyo kumushimira gusa ibyo yagezeho muri siporo, ahubwo n'ibikorwa bye by'ubugiraneza, cyane cyane binyuze muri Leo Messi Foundation n'uruhare rwe nk'intumwa ya UNICEF.

Ibiro by'umukuru w'igihugu byashimangiye ko Messi yatoranyijwe kubera umwuga we w'umupira w'amaguru wageze kuri byinshi ndetse n'umusanzu we muri gahunda z'ubuzima n'uburezi ku isi. Binyuze mu kigo cye, Messi yatanze amafaranga yo gufasha mu mishinga y'uburezi n'ubuvuzi mu bihugu nka Arijantine, Esipanye, Siriya na Bangladesh, usibye no gufungura ikigo cy'ubuvuzi bw'indwara z'abana mu mujyi avukamo wa Rosario. Yakoze kandi mu guteza imbere uburenganzira bw'abana no kubafasha, cyane cyane mu bihe bigoye.

Iki gihembo cyitiriwe umukuru w'igihugu cyiswe Medal of Freedom cyatangijwe mu 1963 na Perezida John F. Kennedy kandi gihabwa abantu bagize "umusanzu w'intangarugero mu iterambere, indangagaciro, cyangwa umutekano wa Leta Zunze Ubumwe z'Amerika, amahoro ku isi, cyangwa izindi mbaraga z'ingenzi z'imibereho y'abantu". Mu gihe cy'imyaka myinshi, iyi mpeta yatanzwe ku bantu bazwi nka Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Angela Merkel, Mama Teresa, n'abakinnyi nka Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan na Simone Biles.

Messi, umukinnyi w'umupira w'amaguru w'umugabo wa mbere wahawe iki gihembo

Messi azaba ari we mukinnyi wa mbere w'umugabo uhawe iki gihembo, nubwo uwahoze ari kapiteni w'ikipe y'igihugu y'abagore y'umupira w'amaguru muri Leta Zunze Ubumwe z'Amerika, Megan Rapinoe, yahawe iki gihembo mu mwaka wa 2022. Byongeye kandi, Messi abaye Umunya-Argentine wa mbere wahawe iki gihembo, icyubahiro kimushyira iruhande rw'ibyamamare nka Hillary Clinton, Magic Johnson, José Andrés, Bono na Denzel Washington.

Messi amaze kwegukana ibikombe birenga 40, igikombe cy'Isi ari kumwe na Argentine, ndetse n'ibikombe bine bya Champions League, byatumye izina rye ry'umukinnyi w'umupira w'amaguru ukomeye kurusha abandi bose rikomera. Icyakora, iki gihembo ntikigaragaza gusa ibyo yagezeho mu mikino, ahubwo kigaragaza n'ubuyobozi bwe n'ubwitange bwe mu muryango.

Umuhango wo gutanga ibihembo uzaba mu mwaka wa nyuma wa perezida Joe Biden. Muri rusange, abantu 19 bazashimirwa umusanzu wabo mu murimo wa leta, aho Messi ari umwe mu bantu bakomeye bazahabwa iki gihembo, gishimirwa ibyo umuntu yagezeho n'ingaruka nziza ku baturage no ku isi.