Heart-scare Colbrelli has defibrillator fitted
Heart-scare Colbrelli has defibrillator fitted
Cycling's Sonny Colbrelli has been fitted with a defibrillator and discharged from hospital in Italy two weeks after collapsing at a bike race finish line, his team Bahrain Victorious said on Saturday.
The 31-year-old European champion went under the knife in Padua after losing consciousness and suffering spasmodic convulsions following an uphill dash for the line in the first stage of last month's Tour of Catalonia.
"Sonny Colbrelli is returning home today after being discharged from the Cardiology Clinic of the University of Padua, where he was admitted on Saturday 26th March," said the team in a statement.
"Colbrelli has been through a successful intervention of subcutaneous defibrillator (ICD) implantation on Thursday."
Bahrain Victorious did not say for how Colbrelli would be away from cycling but he is now in the position of potentially not being able to ride in his home country.
Taking part in competitive sport with a subcutaneous defibrillator is not permitted in Italy.
Inter Milan terminated Christian Eriksen's contract in December after the Danish footballer underwent a similar operation after his collapse at Euro 2020.
Colbrelli had been making his comeback at the Tour of Catalonia after a bout of bronchitis.
He won the prestigious Paris-Roubaix race last year a few weeks after claiming the European title and has a total of 34 race wins over his career.
(P.Toussaint--LPdF)
