Abelardo Raidi ['raɪ-dɪ] (December 25, 1914 – January 27, 2002) was aVenezuelansportswriter andradio broadcaster. He was born inValencia, Carabobo.
Raidi began his career as a radio announcer and play-by-play sports broadcaster in several stations in his country. Then, in 1941 he was the official representative of theVenezuela national baseball team which won the championship title in theIV Amateur Baseball World Series held inHavana, Cuba.
He later became an accomplished sports journalist inCaracas for almost seven decades, first atEl Universal and later atEl Nacional, where he turned in a sports editor and remained for more than 60 years its prestigious and widely read columnPantalla de los Jueves (Screen on Thursdays), where he also wrote with authority about boxing and golf, among other sports, and interviewed entertainment personalities asClaudia Cardinale,María Félix andSophia Loren. Also respected as a beauty scout, he was instrumental in the participation ofMaritza Sayalero andIrene Sáez in theMiss Venezuela beauty pageant, which both won, and then theMiss Universe title in 1979 and 1981, respectively.
Raidi was also a founding member of the Circle of Sports Journalists in Venezuela and earned the National Journalism Award. In addition, the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) established an award to honor him, The Abelardo Raidi Award.
Besides this, Raidi representedZulia state in theChamber of Deputies of Venezuela during the 1969–1974 period and theFederal District from 1974 to 1979.
Raidi died in 2002 in Caracas at the age of 87. The following year, he gained induction into theVenezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum as part of their first class.