Post Staff Writer
 Andry Pavytsky, a member of Kyiv�s Arsenal-2 Football Club, collapsed and died Feb. 29 on a practice field in Crimea where the team was training. He would have turned 18 on March 9. (Kyiv Arsenal FC) |
Less than two months after a local soccer player died in his sleep from heart failure, another younger player from his team is now dead, also from a heart-related illness. On Feb. 29, Andry Pavytsky, a member of Kyiv�s Arsenal-2 Football Club, collapsed on a practice field in Sudak, Crimea, where the team were training for the start of the second half of the season, and was pronounced dead at the scene by the team�s doctor minutes later. |
According to the official autopsy, Pavytsky died from a congenital heart valve condition that he was likely born with. Pavytsky�s death came 10 days short of his birthday. He would have turned 18 on March 9. His funeral, which was attended by his parents, teammates and numerous fans, was held in Kyiv, his hometown, on March 3. An only child, he is survived by his parents.
According to a team news release, Pavytsky was making a run up the field to attack when he collapsed.
�Suddenly, he wasn�t looking very good. Then he fell, face down,� said team spokesperson Valery Shershen after the funeral. �Our team doctor, Mark Chudnovsky, ran out to him and within two minutes, realized things looked fatal.
�He started to scream �Andry, don�t leave us!� but it was too late.�
The team, which is funded by Kyiv�s city budget, covered the costs of Pavytsky�s funeral.
Pavytsky, who switched recently from fullback to striker, played 12 games with the number two squad of Ukrainian First Division club Arsenal Kyiv this past season.
Pavytsky�s death at such a young age due to a heart condition is certain to raise concerns among his teammates and other young players.
On Jan. 7, 23-year-old Shalva Apkhazava, a player on Arsenal�s first division squad, died in his sleep the night before he began training after a two-month hiatus from playing. An autopsy showed that the Georgian national died of cardiomyopathy, a rare genetic or viral heart condition.
Shershen said that all Arsenal players underwent full medicals after Apkhazava�s death, including cardiac analyses. It�s unclear what Pavytsky�s test results were.
The team has scheduled a news conference for the week of March 8.
With two players dead within just eight weeks, Shersen said of the current mood of the team�s players, �This really hurts.�
�Obviously, there is stress on the players, and psychologists will be needed.�
Arsenal Kyiv is not the only European club that has been affected by untimely deaths in the past year, as seemingly healthy soccer players from a number of countries have collapsed and died from apparent heart illnesses.
In June 2003, Cameroon national team player Marc-Vivien Foe, 28, died while playing in 30-degree heat in France. Shortly after Apkhazava�s death, Hungarian Miklos Feher, 24, died of a heart attack on Jan. 26 during a Portuguese first division match, and one day later, a 30-year-old Swedish amateur, identified only as Andreas, died of a heart attack during a pre-game warm-up.