By Youssef Bellarbi
Journalist, great expert on sports, poet with a sharp pen and above all a precursor of press cartoons in Morocco, Belaïd Bouimid passed away on Monday, September 23, 2024 after a long and courageous fight against illness. He was 66 years old.
He had recently been admitted to a clinic in Casablanca where he underwent yet another surgical operation after his health deteriorated. Belaïd Bouimid was used to getting back up. But not this time. The dean of Moroccan journalists, a true big brother to all sports journalists in the country, he passed away on Monday, September 23, 2024 at the age of 66.
Belaïd Bouimid is not only uncompromising analyses of sports, in the press as well as on the radio. A poet, he was also a true cultural and intellectual figure. He is the precursor of press cartoons in Morocco, caricatures.
Father of the sports press in Morocco and Africa, in addition to his talents as a caricaturist, Belaïd Bouimid was a graduate of Sciences Po Paris. This native of El Jadida began his career at Al Bayane with Ali Yata. This was followed by many years of hosting on Radio Mars where he officiated every morning with Lino Baco in Mars Attack , in addition to his various columns, notably in the daily L’Opinion .
A renowned caricaturist, he organized several exhibitions in Morocco and in France where he was friends with Plantu, the great caricaturist of the French daily newspaper Le Monde .
A drawing by Belaïd Bouimid.
This passion would accompany him until his deathbed. As evidenced by these drawings, published no later than the beginning of September. The line is fragile, but the spirit is intact.
In 2005 and 2009, he was elected president of the African Union of Sports Press (UAPS). As he was a member of the International Association of Sports Press (AIPS).
He leaves behind the image of a man who embodied the humility of great journalists, a kindness and thoughtfulness that endured all odds, and that great humor that he used both as a weapon and as a remedy.