MariamThe death of a soccer star
We, as a society, tend to put our sports players on a pedestal, and all too often these players become part of our family, in turn experiencing pain and sadness as if we know them personally.
Recently Scottish soccer faced the death of a prominent player and captain of the Scottish Premier League. The 35 year old Midfielder, Phil O’Donnell collapsed as he exited the field, no immediate reasons were released. While O’Donnell’s death is tragic he is not the first to die on the field and/or during a game.
In 2003, a Cameroon midfielder, Marc-Vivien Foe, collapsed and died during the Confederations Cup in France. Sevilla midfielder, Antonio Puerta, died after he collapsed during a Spanish league game. Also within the last year two other players have died, one of heart failure and a 16 year old English player collapsed during training.
Each of these incidents has prompted soccer’s administration to require general physical and cardio-vascular test on all players prior to the World Cup in Germany.
It is an assumption of many that those we are in ideal shape do not have the same concerns as those who may not be at our best, as we have seen it is not the case, as these sudden deaths have occurred in others sports as well.
The best course of action is to monitor you health, no matter how you feel.
Recently Scottish soccer faced the death of a prominent player and captain of the Scottish Premier League. The 35 year old Midfielder, Phil O’Donnell collapsed as he exited the field, no immediate reasons were released. While O’Donnell’s death is tragic he is not the first to die on the field and/or during a game.
In 2003, a Cameroon midfielder, Marc-Vivien Foe, collapsed and died during the Confederations Cup in France. Sevilla midfielder, Antonio Puerta, died after he collapsed during a Spanish league game. Also within the last year two other players have died, one of heart failure and a 16 year old English player collapsed during training.
Each of these incidents has prompted soccer’s administration to require general physical and cardio-vascular test on all players prior to the World Cup in Germany.
It is an assumption of many that those we are in ideal shape do not have the same concerns as those who may not be at our best, as we have seen it is not the case, as these sudden deaths have occurred in others sports as well.
The best course of action is to monitor you health, no matter how you feel.
