Last update - 00:00 29/08/2007
Zambian soccer player for Hapoel Be'er Sheva dies during practice
By The Associated Press
A Zambian soccer player collapsed during a practice session Wednesday in the southern city of Be'er Sheva, and died minutes later in a hospital, according to health officials.
Media reports identified the player as Chaswe Nsofwa, a striker playing as a foreign professional for the local Hapoel Be'er Sheva soccer club, which plays in Israel's second league.
Israel TV reported that the Nsofwa, 27, collapsed during a practice game in the desert city. Rescue workers tried to restart his heart for several minutes on the field before taking him to Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva.
Paramedic Carmel Cohen told The Associated Press that he rushed to the field when he received the emergency call.
"When we arrived we found the soccer player lying on the grass. We found his friends trying to help him, he said. We gave him first aid, electric shocks and an external pacemaker, but despite all our efforts, he was declared dead at the hospital."
It was not known what caused the player's collapse. Israel TV reported that he recently passed a physical exam.