(Reuters) – Cadiz goalkeeper Jeremias Ledesma was widely praised after his quick thinking helped medical staff resuscitate a fan who suffered a cardiac arrest during Saturday’s LaLiga game against Barcelona.
The match was suspended in the 81st minute when a man collapsed behind the goal but Ledesma sprang into action, going to the dugout to retrieve a medical kit with a defibrillator.
He sprinted back to the section where the fan collapsed and threw the kit to the medical staff, earning plaudits on social media after the video of the incident went viral.
“One of the medical teams went to the stands with a defibrillator and a monitor, starting the resuscitation tasks,” Cadiz said in a statement.
“At the same time, FC Barcelona offered a second defibrillator in case its use was necessary, and it was brought to the area by the players themselves.
“The resuscitation was positive after a few minutes, and the fan was transferred to the ICU of the Hospital Puerta del Mar, where he remains hospitalized.”
Barcelona won the game 4-0 after the match restarted and coach Xavi Hernandez said completing the game hinged on the fan’s condition.
“We all got together — referees, Cadiz, Barca — and we decided to continue, we’re glad we didn’t have a tragedy,” Xavi told reporters.
“We’re talking about a human life and any human life is above a soccer game. So it depends on him recovering, whether we would continue the game, which is what happened.”
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
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