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          One Nacion

          Sports world in Mexico celebrates Guillermo del Toro's Oscars-winning night

          • ESPN.com
          Mar 5, 2018, 09:45 PM

          Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro was the big winner on an Oscars night rife with celebration for his country.

          The director of "The Shape of Water" won the Academy Award for Best Director, and his acclaimed film won four out of the 13 categories in which it was nominated, including Best Picture. Four out of the last five Oscars for Best Director have been won by Mexican film directors. Alfonso Cuarón won in 2013 for "Gravity" and Alejandro G. Iñárritu won in 2014 for "Birdman" and the following year for "The Revenant."

          Following del Toro's triumph at the 90th Academy Awards, a number of Mexican athletes and sports teams rejoiced, offering public congratulations:

          Mexico's El Tri was among the first to celebrate del Toro, thanking the director for shining a positive light on the country:

          Atlas FC, the soccer club del Toro roots for, is nicknamed la Academia, a fact not lost on them when posting on social media:

          ESPN Mexico later reported that Atlas would extend an invitation to del Toro for its upcoming home game, on March 30th against Santos Laguna. The team has reached out to del Toro, hoping to allow for a public celebration, gifting the the Guadalajara native with a plaque and a special jersey.

          Rafael Márquez, a four-time World Cup defender for Mexico and the captain of Atlas, was also quick to send del Toro a message on Twitter:

          The other Guadalajara club, Chivas, one of Mexican soccer's most successful teams with 12 league titles (and Atlas' fiercest rival) called del Toro "a source of pride for Mexico":

          Other Liga MX clubs tweeted messages at del Toro, including Pachuca:

          Monarcas Morelia said del Toro "filled them with pride":

          Xolos displayed a stylized animation of the director with their congratulatory tweet:

          Former MLB player and fellow Mexican Jorge Cantú sent out his regards in a message loaded with baseball references, likening del Toro's triumph to a walk-off home run:

          Former top-ranked LPGA golfer Lorena Ochoa thanked del Toro and his family for supporting her career, particularly during its initial stages.