Post by CandyKANE on Oct 25, 2002 7:09:05 GMT -5
credit: espn
BOGOTA, Colombia -- A Colombian soccer player who competed in the 1994 World Cup was killed Thursday when he was struck by lightning during practice.
The death of 32-year-old Hermam Gaviria was announced by the Valle de Lili hospital. Four other players on Deportivo Cali were injured and hospitalized.
One of them, Giovany Cordoba, had three heart attacks and was in critical condition, doctors at the hospital said.
Practice had just begun when the afternoon storm hit. Teammates tried to revive Gaviria on the field before taking him to the hospital.
"I was saved by a miracle," teammate Mauricio Espinosa said. "I was only five meters from Hermam."
Francisco Henao, a fan, was watching practice at the time.
"It was a surprise storm," he said. "The lightning strike hit the post and then the field." Gaviria, a halfback, played for Colombia's national team in the 1994 World Cup in the United States and in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. He played in Japan before recently joining Deportivo Cali.
BOGOTA, Colombia -- A Colombian soccer player who competed in the 1994 World Cup was killed Thursday when he was struck by lightning during practice.
The death of 32-year-old Hermam Gaviria was announced by the Valle de Lili hospital. Four other players on Deportivo Cali were injured and hospitalized.
One of them, Giovany Cordoba, had three heart attacks and was in critical condition, doctors at the hospital said.
Practice had just begun when the afternoon storm hit. Teammates tried to revive Gaviria on the field before taking him to the hospital.
"I was saved by a miracle," teammate Mauricio Espinosa said. "I was only five meters from Hermam."
Francisco Henao, a fan, was watching practice at the time.
"It was a surprise storm," he said. "The lightning strike hit the post and then the field." Gaviria, a halfback, played for Colombia's national team in the 1994 World Cup in the United States and in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. He played in Japan before recently joining Deportivo Cali.