collapsing on the pitch yesterday.
The first class pitchside treatment received
by Fabrice Muamba was thrown into sharp
relief yesterday by the death of a footballer
who collapsed while playing in India.
In a shocking incident that again brought to
light the poor medical facilities provided for
local football tournaments, a 27-year-old
player died on Wednesday after he collapsed
at the Bangalore Football Stadium during a
league match.
Times of India reports that Venkatesh, a
midfielder for A-division side Bangalore
Mars, came in as substitute in the 73rd
minute before collapsing in the dying
minutes of the match. The Bangalore District
Football Association, which annually
organises the Super, ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’ divisions,
allegedly did not have a doctor present on
the field. A physio and players rushed in and
tried standard medical procedures on
Venkatesh, who by now was having fits,
teammate Janardhan said.
Then came the crunch – no ambulance.
Though some BDFA members denied the
allegation, team manager Shiva, who is also
a BDFA member, said there was a tempo on
standby at the eastern wing of the stadium.
“The only reason we couldn’t get it out in
time was that there were many two
wheelers parked around it,” he said.
Players and officials carried Venkatesh in
their arms off the field, hired an auto
rickshaw and rushed him to Hosmat
Hospital, where he was declared dead.
“There was no pulse or respiration. We gave
him CPR and defibrillator shocks, but it was
too late,” Hosmat vice-president Dr Ajith
Benedict Royan said.
Preliminary post-mortem reports agreed
with Dr Royan’s suggestion that Venkatesh
died of cardiac arrest. “There were no
external injuries. This is also known as
Sudden Death Syndrome, which is common
among footballers. Maybe if he had been
given oxygen or proper medical care at the
time of the incident, he could have stood a
chance,” Dr Royan added.
Venkatesh has represented Karnataka at the
junior and sub-junior levels and has been
with Mars for the last five years.
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