Goalie collapses on football pitch and dies in emergency ward

KOTA KINABALU: A man collapsed and subsequently died during a football match at the Penampang sports complex near here on Sunday (April 3) evening.

The 57-year-old, who was playing as goalkeeper, was said to have lost consciousness halfway through the game at around 6pm.

His teammates who went to his aid said later that they still detected a pulse at the time.

Penampang OCPD Deputy Supt Mohd Haris Ibrahim said firemen who arrived at the scene performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the victim before sending him to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital emergency ward.

“The victim was, however, pronounced dead while receiving emergency treatment at the hospital,” he said in a statement on Monday (April 4).

He said the cause of death was still unknown and the victim’s body had been sent to the Hospital Forensics Department for a post-mortem.

“The case is being classified as a Sudden Death Report for now,” DSP Mohd Haris said.