Everyone was on the edge of their seats while watching the nerve wrecking men’s single badminton semi-final match between Malaysian shuttler Lee Chong Wei and arch rival Lin Dan at the Rio Olympic Games last Friday (19th August).
Unfortunately, the intense competition proved too overwhelming for a 64-year-old man named Lum Wah Wong when he collapsed and died of heart attack at 8.55pm while watching the game at his sister’s residence in Papan, Ipoh.
The elderly man’s cousin, Bibi Lam, told The Star that Wah Wong got overly excited when the 2 badminton rivals drew level at 20-20 in the deciding set during the match. The family member claimed that Wah Wong, who was watching the match with his niece, stood up and shouted before the heart attack occurred.
“They were the only ones watching the match in the house. He stood up and shouted. Seconds later, he sat back down, took 2 breaths of air and fell unconscious. Our niece tried to wake him up. He opened his eyes for a second but slipped back into unconsciousness. When the ambulance came, the personnel checked his pulse and confirmed his passing,” said Bibi.
Sadly, by the time Wah Wong was brought to the Batu Gajah Hospital, the senior citizen had already passed away. District police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Nasri Omar confirmed he had been receiving treatment before this unfortunate incident.
Our condolences to the victim’s family and friends.
