Espanyol captain dies of heart attack after training session.

[ste1987]

Shocking scenario.

 

Espanyol captain Daniel Jarque has died after he suffered a heart attack following a training session, the club have confirmed in a statement.

 

The 26-year-old midfielder had been training in Coverciano, Italy, where the squad are on a pre-season camp.

 

Club doctors and Italian paramedics tried to revive Jarque without success.

 

His death comes two years after Sevilla defender Antonio Puerta, 22, died of heart failure after collapsing during a Spanish league game.

 

Jarque joined Espanyol at the age of 12, making his debut in 2002, and the Spaniard was handed the club captaincy this summer.

Daniel Jarque

Jarque was a product of Espanyol's youth academy

 

"Tragedy struck Espanyol and the family of Dani Jarque this evening. The player died from a cardiac arrest," said a club statement.

 

"The doctor carried out CPR on the player and used a defibrillator, which showed that the arrest was non responsive.

 

"RCD Espanyol, broken with pain, wish to put themselves at the absolute disposition of the family of our captain Dani Jarque, to whom go our warmest thoughts."

 

Espanyol, who had been due to play Bologna on Sunday, have suspended their pre-season tour of Italy and will fly back to Barcelona.

 

"We are returning to Barcelona on Sunday but we can't come back with the coffin because they have to do an autopsy to confirm the cause of death," added club director German de la Cruz.

 

"The players are destroyed. One minute he was there with them, and the next he's gone. It's terrible."

 

That such a young man, a great professional and sportsman, has suffered this has left us very upset

 

Real Madrid captain Raul

 

The president of city neighbours Barcelona, Joan Laporta, offered his club's condolences.

 

"We are filled with extreme dismay at this tragic event which we deeply regret," he told the Barcelona club website.

 

"We are all in mourning. I want to send, on behalf of FC Barcelona, our deepest sympathies to RCD Espanyol for the painful loss of their captain Dani Jarque, and to his family."

 

As news of Jarque's death spread, tributes continued to pour in, with Real Madrid captain Raul also speaking of his shock.

 

"That such a young man, a great professional and sportsman, has suffered this has left us very upset," he said.

 

Other players who have died of heart failure include Cameroon midfielder Marc-Vivien Foe and Motherwell midfielder Phil O'Donnell.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8191861.stm

[Oafc88]

Always sad to hear of a death and especially of someone so young with arguably a lot more years left to live

 

RIP

[johnny punkster]

very shocking story and unfortunately becoming more a common tragedy.

being a barca fan and espanyol our local rivals ,football is put to one side in situations like this.

i've seen dani play live a few times v barca and of course on tv and he was a very good player(he had just been made captain).

 

my thoughts are with his girlfriend and family.

[rudemedic]

Ever since Asa Hartford was diagnosed with a heart problem when he was on the verge of either signing (or being sold) by us, my Dad has been an advocate of having every professional football undergo an ECHO (a heart ultrasound) during every medical and as I begin to understand medicine I realise that this should be in the rules of the game (or for them to at least have had one when they get YTS forms) in terms of transfers. Similar problems killed those players mentioned in the article, stopped Eardley's brother's career in its tracks (and he was supposed to be better than Neal) and put Kanu out of action for a year- that may have been a different heart problem but its still the best way to diagnose it. The condition (whch is called Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy- essentially too big a heart muscle) is of some benefit to athletes so those people who have the condition are likely to be good at sport (as it often presents itself with sudden death in the 20s) when they are young because of increased cardiovascular stamina. I know Sepp Blatter was talking about it not that long ago (probably during the Confed cup) and I think this may put him into action. Or the Spanish FA may act, as this is the second person to die from a heart attack in their 20s in Spanish football in the last 18 months, and I've seen footage of some bloke who had some cool gadget which I think was an interior defibrilator get cardio shocked on the pitch after having a heart attack- he was seriously at risk.

 

My thoughts are with the player's family, friends and teammates at this tragic time too.

Edited August 10, 2009 by rudemedic