a écrit le 1 juillet 2003 à 17h24 Medical screening for Foe questioned
By Frank Dell'Apa, Globe Staff, 7/1/2003
ome of Marc-Vivien Foe's last words were expressed at halftime of the Cameroon-Colombia game last Thursday in Lyon, France. ''Even if it means dying, we must win this match,'' Foe told his teammates.
A half hour later, Foe was pronounced dead after collapsing on the field. There is much speculation about the cause of the death, and certainly more than one factor was involved. FIFA president Sepp Blatter strongly denied any connection to drugs. The heat (temperatures in the low 90s for a 6 p.m. start) and overworked schedule are partly to blame, though Foe had nearly five days rest in between games.
Certainly, the Confederations Cup highlights the overblown international schedule. Manchester City, Foe's team in the Premier League, is scheduled to return to training next week. England's club schedule concluded in May, but Spain's La Liga continued until last weekend. Then there is the Intertoto Cup competition, a qualifier for the UEFA Cup, which started last month and continues into late August.
But, more likely to blame for Foe's death is the exploitative nature of European soccer and the lack of medical scrutiny. Foe likely was not screened for heart problems and, if he was, the diagnosis was ignored. This raises some serious questions about how African players are going to be considered in the future.
Foe apparently was detected to have an enlarged heart -- hypertrophic cardiomyopathy -- when he came to West Ham United, but was cleared because the condition was considered ''normal'' for an African athlete.
''Initially, it seemed that Marc's enlarged heart could present a problem,'' former West Ham manager Harry Redknapp told News of the World. ''But when we sent him to one specialist, they told us that Foe's condition is absolutely normal and common among African athletes, and that because of that we could proceed with the signing of the contract.''
The stakes are high for those determining the fates of players such as Foe. FC Lens brought Foe to France from Canon Yaounde in 1994. After winning the French championship in '98, Foe went to West Ham on transfer worth about $7 million. A year later, Olympique Lyon paid about $10 million for Foe, won the 2002 title, and loaned him to Manchester City.
But physical examination standards differ. Italian officials would have rejected Foe, as they did Nwankwo Kanu after the 1998 World Cup. Ajax doctors cleared Kanu after he arrived from Nigeria, but when he was purchased by Inter, in a routine exam an Italian doctor detected a valve problem that likely would have been fatal. Kanu went to Cleveland for surgery, then to California for a year of recovery and rehabilitation.
The Italian club Treviso last week rejected two players from the Ivory Coast, Yussouf Kone and Adama Niambele, for similar reasons, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
''Considering Redknapp's declarations, Foe would not have played in Italy,'' said Alessandro Zenari, the agent who brought Kone and Niambele to Italy. ''In Italy the controls are very strict and they take no risks.''
By Frank Dell'Apa, Globe Staff, 7/1/2003
ome of Marc-Vivien Foe's last words were expressed at halftime of the Cameroon-Colombia game last Thursday in Lyon, France. ''Even if it means dying, we must win this match,'' Foe told his teammates.
A half hour later, Foe was pronounced dead after collapsing on the field. There is much speculation about the cause of the death, and certainly more than one factor was involved. FIFA president Sepp Blatter strongly denied any connection to drugs. The heat (temperatures in the low 90s for a 6 p.m. start) and overworked schedule are partly to blame, though Foe had nearly five days rest in between games.
Certainly, the Confederations Cup highlights the overblown international schedule. Manchester City, Foe's team in the Premier League, is scheduled to return to training next week. England's club schedule concluded in May, but Spain's La Liga continued until last weekend. Then there is the Intertoto Cup competition, a qualifier for the UEFA Cup, which started last month and continues into late August.
But, more likely to blame for Foe's death is the exploitative nature of European soccer and the lack of medical scrutiny. Foe likely was not screened for heart problems and, if he was, the diagnosis was ignored. This raises some serious questions about how African players are going to be considered in the future.
Foe apparently was detected to have an enlarged heart -- hypertrophic cardiomyopathy -- when he came to West Ham United, but was cleared because the condition was considered ''normal'' for an African athlete.
''Initially, it seemed that Marc's enlarged heart could present a problem,'' former West Ham manager Harry Redknapp told News of the World. ''But when we sent him to one specialist, they told us that Foe's condition is absolutely normal and common among African athletes, and that because of that we could proceed with the signing of the contract.''
The stakes are high for those determining the fates of players such as Foe. FC Lens brought Foe to France from Canon Yaounde in 1994. After winning the French championship in '98, Foe went to West Ham on transfer worth about $7 million. A year later, Olympique Lyon paid about $10 million for Foe, won the 2002 title, and loaned him to Manchester City.
But physical examination standards differ. Italian officials would have rejected Foe, as they did Nwankwo Kanu after the 1998 World Cup. Ajax doctors cleared Kanu after he arrived from Nigeria, but when he was purchased by Inter, in a routine exam an Italian doctor detected a valve problem that likely would have been fatal. Kanu went to Cleveland for surgery, then to California for a year of recovery and rehabilitation.
The Italian club Treviso last week rejected two players from the Ivory Coast, Yussouf Kone and Adama Niambele, for similar reasons, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
''Considering Redknapp's declarations, Foe would not have played in Italy,'' said Alessandro Zenari, the agent who brought Kone and Niambele to Italy. ''In Italy the controls are very strict and they take no risks.''
