ESPN reports that Russian hockey officials -- Continental Hockey League KHL -- will ban team executives and doctors following the investigation of New Yok (York) Rangers prospect Alexei Cherepanov.
Cherepanov died last year during a hockey match. Investigating the suspicious death of a 19 year-old professional athlete, generated reports that the young player took stimulants prior to his demise. However now the Russian officials backtrack on that conclusion to implicate the executives and doctors involved with Cherepanov. Something seems slippery here. (ESPN reports)
Russia's Continental Hockey League has banned five team executives
and doctors, four of them indefinitely, for at least two years for
their roles in connection with the death of New York Rangers prospect
Alexei Cherepanov.
The men -- including the former team president and general manager of Avangard Omsk and two team doctors -- were banned following a KHL investigation, which concluded that the parties involved "exhibited criminal negligence" in their duties and knowingly tried to treat Cherepanov's life-threatening heart condition on their own.
The league also clarified earlier media reports that Cherepanov had been using performance-enhancing drugs, explaining that what had been earlier reported as doping was in fact an attempt to treat Cherepanov's heart condition.
Cherepanov, 19, collapsed Oct. 13 while on the bench for the Omsk club Avangard in Russia's Continental Hockey League and died a short time later. The league said Friday that Cherepanov had suffered from chronic myocarditis and that the cause of his death was acute heart failure.
Interesting that the cause of death was acute heart failure. In the end, everyone dies of 'heart failure'. However in this case we find it suspicious that a 19 year-old with myocarditis died of heart failure.
We would suspect the athlete died of an arrhythmia, which caused the acute 'heart failure'...inability to pump adequate blood to the tissues.
We also raises suspicious about the conclusion that the Russian hockey player did not use PEDs; the report says the drug found in the athlete was used to treat his heart condition. No stimulant would be used to treat myocarditis, unless the drug were something like lidocaine, for severe ventricular arrhythmia.
The Russian report excoriated the doctors treating Cherepanov's condition. It also addressed the PED issue this way:
Durmanov also addressed media reports last month alleging that Cherepanov had used performance-enhancing drugs.
"The team doctors of Avangard tried to treat Alexei on their own. What the press described as systematic doping, was an attempt to cure Alexei's heart condition," he said.
That's the unusual conclusion that is not believable.
It also appears the emergency crew sent to the hockey meet was not well prepared:
Following Cherepanov's death, prosecutors alleged the arena where Cherepanov was playing failed to coordinate proper emergency medical services before the game. Last month, Russia's federal Investigative Committee alleged a "row of gross violations was committed by the medical brigade" helping Cherepanov.
"Among them, doctors arrived on the scene a full 12 minutes after Cherepanov collapsed, and the battery on the defibrillator to attempt shock Cherepanov's heart back into life was drained," investigators said.
We do not believe the truth has yet emerged about the PED use, and the death of this young hockey star. Can't the Russians inject some veracity into their reports?
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