Maciej Białas, 28, had just finished a football training session and was heading off to visit his twin brother when he collapsed and died in Gniezno, Poland
A 28-year-old footballer and father-to-be has tragically died after he collapsed while at football training with his brother.
Maciej Białas had just finished a training session and was visiting his twin brother when disaster struck. He suddenly felt unwell, collapsed, and lost his pulse. His brother Mateusz immediately began resuscitation efforts, and there was a flicker of hope when his heart restarted after the collapse on Saturday.
Paramedics rushed him to the hospital, where surgeons removed a clot that had caused a heart attack. Although his heart was beating again, his brain had been deprived of oxygen for too long, leading to brain death.
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Maciej and his wife, Wiktoria, were expecting a baby, as reported by NeedToKnow.. He died in the fourth month of the pregnancy, before learning the sex of the child. It has since emerged that he was expecting a son.
He will be laid to rest in Gniezno – east of Poznań, Poland – tomorrow. Maciej played for clubs including Mieszko Gniezno and seventh-tier side Kolejarz Czeremcha.
Kolejarz Czeremcha paid tribute, saying: “A son, husband, brother, our colleague and friend – and above all a wonderful person. He grew up with us in football from the earliest levels, and it can be said he was a homegrown player of our team.
“He was ambitious, determined, and in training and matches always gave 100%. On and off the pitch, he was an inspiration to many of us.”
It comes after a dad issued a warning to holidaymakers after his son died next to his two boys while flying to Bulgaria.
Chris Neill, 40, and his two sons, Reece, 20, and Archie, nine, had set off from Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport headed for Burgas on September 16 last year, when he suddenly fell ill on board. Chris’ parents, Mal and Lesley, set up a GoFundMe to raise funds for his body to be returned to the UK.
The fundraiser performed incredibly well, collecting almost £10,000 over the £15,000 target. On the anniversary of Chris’ death, Mal revealed the money was used to repatriate his body before the surplus was put into a trust fund for the two boys.
Mal flew out to Germany the following day to collect Reece and Archie, seeing them safely back on a plane home to the UK while he remained in Cologne to deal with the coroner, reports the Manchester Evening News. Speaking shortly after Chris’s death last year, Mal explained how his son believed he had travel insurance through his bank, Halifax, but it had unfortunately expired.