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Goolaerts Suffered Heart Attack Before Crash

  An autopsy on stricken cyclist Michael Goolaerts, who died during Paris-Roubaix on Sunday, confirmed the Belgian suffered a heart attack before crashing in the … Continue reading Goolaerts Suffered Heart Attack Before Crash


Belgian Michael Goolaerts of Verandas Willems – Crelan competes on the ‘Muur van Geraardsbergen’ cobblestone road in Geraardsbergen, during the 102nd edition of the ‘Ronde van Vlaanderen – Tour des Flandres – Tour of Flanders’ one day cycling race, 264,7km from Antwerp to Oudenaarde, on April 1, 2018. Belgian cyclist Michael Goolaerts died in hospital on Sunday at the age of 23, hours after suffering heart failure during the gruelling Paris-Roubaix one-day classic race in France. DIRK WAEM / BELGA / AFP
Belgian Cyclist, Michael Goolaerts of Verandas Willems – Crelan competes on the ‘Muur van Geraardsbergen’ cobblestone road in Geraardsbergen, during the 102nd edition of the ‘Ronde van Vlaanderen – Tour des Flandres – Tour of Flanders’ one day cycling race, 264,7 km from Antwerp to Oudenaarde. Photo Credit: DIRK WAEM / BELGA / AFP

 

An autopsy on stricken cyclist Michael Goolaerts, who died during Paris-Roubaix on Sunday, confirmed the Belgian suffered a heart attack before crashing in the early stages of the cycling one-day classic.

Goolaerts, 23, was found unconscious and not breathing at the side of the road after racing along one of the course’s famous cobbled sections.

Despite treatment at a hospital in Lille, the Veranda’s Willems team rider was pronounced dead late on Sunday.

“The autopsy confirms the previous hypothesis that death was due to a heart attack and not a crash,” the state prosecutor for Cambrai, Remy Schwartz, told AFP on Wednesday.

“He suffered an attack while racing. His heart stopped, and that’s why he crashed.”

Experts will now carry out toxicology and other tests on the rider to determine an exact cause of the heart attack, although results may not be known for several weeks.

“For now, we will carry out toxicology and pathological exams to determine the real cause of the attack,” added Schwartz.

AFP